The Demigod Trap
by Just Another Fanatic
Summary: Izzy and Addy hated one another from the moment they met, until they discover that they were, in fact, sisters. Twins even. So, they devise a way to each meet the parent they never knew, and then get them back together. It's a Parent Trap! Tratie!
1. Prologue

**Okay, so in some sort of boredom, I just watch all three Parent Traps last night. Yes, the original, the sequel, and the remake. And then, to top it off, I had trouble getting to sleep. What did this become? Well, I began another new fic. One guess what it's about. Anyway, here it it. Hope you enjoy. And, in case you're worried, I'll still be working on my other fics, when I can find the time.**

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><p>The Demigod Trap<p>

Prologue - Years Ago

"If you want my honest to goodness opinion, you're crazy," Connor Stoll said as he pulled on a tie. He was speaking to his older brother, Travis. The two were at a courthouse in New York City, along with quite a few of their friends.

Travis was head over heels in love. He didn't know exactly how it happened. After all, he had known Katie Gardner for years, he couldn't count the years. But, one day, she arrived at camp for the summer, and Travis just knew. All those pranks he had spent years pulling on her were all because he wanted her attention.

"How do I look?" Travis asked.

"You look fine, Travis," Percy Jackson said.

"Anyway, I highly doubt she's marrying you for your looks," Connor said. "I'm clearly the better looking one." The rest of the crowd consisted of Nico, Will, Thalia (along with several Huntresses), Piper, Leo, Jason, Drew, Clovis, Rachel, most of Cabin Eleven, all of Cabin Four, Malcolm, and so on. Pretty much anyone at camp older than seventeen.

"Shut up," Travis said, punching his brother's shoulder lightly. He looked at the watch he wore. Katie was running slightly late.

"I still think it's a little silly for me to be so dressed up," Katie said to Annabeth Chase and Miranda Gardiner. "I mean, it's not supposed to be super formal."

"Trust me, Katie, in five or ten years, you'll be glad that you wore a dress," Miranda said. "You'd never forgive yourself if you got married with dirt under your fingernails and wearing your Camp Half-Blood shirt."

She was wearing a simple sundress, despite her insistence that she didn't need it, and a twenty dollar ring which Travis had used to propose to her with. A courthouse wedding wasn't supposed to be all formal. However, when she walked through the doors and spotted everyone else, she was glad. In the center of the crowd stood Travis, looking rather dashing, if she thought so herself.

"Wow, you look... wow," Travis said, taking her hand. It had been just two and a half months since they had begun dating, and already they were getting married. Both were sure that their parents... their immortal parents that is... would never approve of the union, so as secretly as they could, they planned a wedding. Granted, with about tweny friends, they doubted it was any kind of secret. They especially knew that it wasn't when Chiron wheeled in.

"You didn't really think that you could get away without your parents knowing, did you?" he asked.

"Oh, is Demeter going to smite me?" Travis asked.

"No, of course not," Katie said. They walked into their courtroom and waited until they were called. They smiled brightly, signed the papers, and had their first kiss as a married couple.

Immediately after, they all went to a small restaurant, reserved for the wedding courtesy of Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Everyone congratulated the newly weds. And, of course, there were gifts. Household appliances, kitchen needs, even a bit of furniture, all things they'd need to start their new life together.

Everyone ate, danced, and had a jolly time. Even the arrival of several Olympians didn't spoil the mood. And, of course, Aphrodite promised them a bumpy ride.

Demeter and Hermes surprised the two with a home. One full year of paid rent and utilities for a decent apartment in New York. It would give them time to find jobs, at the very least.

They had been married a year and a half when the twins were born. Addison Lily Stoll and Isabelle Sophia Stoll. By that time, things weren't going as smoothly as they had been the first few months. Travis and Katie were both working a lot harder than they had thought, and now that the twins were in their lives, Katie had to take maternity leave.

The twins were three months old when they lost their electricity for a week. Four months old when Katie had to beg her father for a loan so that they could keep their phone bills paid. They had already lost their internet, and sold their television, just so they wouldn't be tempted with cable. Travis, while he had no trouble finding a job, was always having trouble keeping it.

And, when the twins were six months old, the two couldn't take it anymore. Katie packed everything of hers, and half of the baby things, and walked out, taking Isabelle with her.

Travis, of course, was sad, and angry, furious even. However, he knew he needed to be strong for Addison. The baby, after all, was now his full responsibility, and he loved her more than anything in the world... well, tied with his love for Isabelle. When they finalized their divorce, it was agreed that each would have one child, and there was no reason that they needed to know that the other existed.

Katie moved shortly after to Orlando where she was eventually able to open her own floral arrangement business with the help of her father. Travis, on the other hand, was swayed west to Oregon where he eventually landed an honest job as a corporate spy.


	2. Prank War

Chapter 1 - The Prank War

"Hey, kiddo, you sure you want to spend the summer here instead of with your favorite Uncle Connor?" Connor Stoll asked Addison Stoll when he was dropping her off at a summer camp in the mountains above San Diego. It wasn't Camp Half-Blood, but it was the closest the Stolls could find.

"I'll be fine, Uncle Connor," Addison, or as she liked to be called, Addy said. "If I can't go to your camp, which Chiron said that I couldn't as I'm not the child of a god, but the child of a demigod, then I'd still like a summer camp experience." She stuck her tongue out at her uncle, and he repeated the gesture. He then reached out and ruffled her wavy brown hair.

"Well, you've got my number and e-mail, so write me if you want me to rescue you," Connor said. "And I will see you in six weeks when your term is over. Your dad's current job should be done by then. After all, how long could it take him to learn the secret to make perfect sushi?"

They laughed and high fived before Connor got back into the rental and drove to the airport. Addy turned around and headed inside the borders.

"Addison Stoll, checking in," Addy said.

"Welcome," the woman with the clip board said. She flipped a page. "There you are. Cabin Eleven. Oh, lucky you, it's one of the new ones. It's one of two with air conditioning."

"Sweet," Addison said. "I didn't even think about that, but now that you mention it, air conditioning is great."

"Just find the cabin with the blue flag," the counselor said.

"Thanks," Addison said and readjusted her duffle strap on her shoulder. She began marching toward the cabin, whistling as she went.

"Hey, girls," she said arriving at Cabin Eleven. "I'm Addy."

"Nice to meet you, Addy," one girl said. "I'm Hallie and this is Annie."

"Good to meet," Addy said. She dropped her duffle on the foot of her bed and stuffed her hands deep into her jean shorts pockets.

"Hey, cool streak," Annie said of the green streak in Addy's bangs.

"Thanks," Addy said. "I think it brings out the green in my eyes."

"I'd have to agree with that," Annie said. She had black hair and blue eyes and stood a bit shorter than Addy.

Addy took a cue from Hallie and Annie and began to unpack her things from her duffle into the provided drawers. She put a photo of her father on the table next to her bed.

"Who is that man?" Hallie asked.

"That's my dad," Addy said. "And, I know, he looks way too young to be a dad, but that was taken before I was born, so he doesn't look quite that young anymore. Though, in my opinion, I think the years were very kind to him."

* * *

><p>Isabelle Gardner treaded lightly onto the camp grounds after being dropped off by the service her mother had arranged. She kept a keen eye out for flowers that she thought might be something her mother might want to start growing for her flower shop.<p>

Izzy hadn't been exactly too keen on going to a camp so far away from her home, but was glad she did. Florida was usually a huge heat wave during the summer, but up in the mountains of San Diego, the air was clean and crisp. Izzy could almost feel the tiny bits of Demeter's blood in her veins, though she knew that she had no demigod powers like her mother.

Izzy loved nature, and usually found outside or in a green house, tending to flowers. She ran her hand through her long brown hair, before tying it in a knot to keep it off her neck.

"Is this where I check in?" Izzy asked approaching a lady under a sign that was labeled **A-J**.

"Last name?" the woman asked.

"Gardner," Izzy responded. "Isabelle Gardner, that is."

The woman flipped through several pages. "Ah, there you are. Cabin Four. It's the one with the green flag."

"Thank you," Izzy said and began toward the cabin area. She took deep breath, taking in all the fresh air and the smell of the trees. This wonderful scent would be hers for the next six weeks, and she couldn't be more thrilled.

"Is this cabin four?" she asked, knocking on the rickety old door.

"It sure is," one girl sitting on a bed said. "Are you sure you're at the right cabin, though?"

"I think so," Izzy said. "The woman at the check in station told me so."

"It's just that, well, Cabin Four is for the older, returning campers, and I've never seen you before."

"The newer girls are given the nice, air-conditioned cabins," another girl said. "The camp thinks that they're more likely to get people to return if they think they'll get air-conditioning and stuff. They figure after two summers, they will have good enough friends that they'd keep coming back even without giving them cushiony cabins."

"Well, I'd actually prefer the older cabins without it," Izzy said. "It reminds me more of what the real experience is supposed to be like. I mean, I didn't come to camp to be pampered."

"Wow, a real wild woman," the first girl said. "I'm Susan and that's Sharon. What's your name?"

"I'm Izzy."

* * *

><p>"So, what brings you to Camp Abner, anyway," Hallie asked Addy as the two of them were in line to get their lunch.<p>

"Well, it is similar to the camp my dad went to as a kid," Addy said. "And he loved his camp."

"It's so cool that you can identify all those flowers," Sharon said to Izzy.

"It's something I've always been able to do," Izzy said twisting her hair into a bun to keep out of her face as she ate.

"Still, I wish I could name half the number of plants you did," Susan said.

"Well, my mother is a florist," Izzy said. "It's kind of my job."

"No way did you possibly manage to paint your teacher's face while she was asleep," Annie gasped at the story Addy was telling.

"It was watercolor but, yeah, I did," Addy said. "But, now, if you'll excuse me, I need to use the little girl's room."

Addy stood up and began to make her way toward the bathroom, until she realized she didn't know where it was. "Hey, Miss Humble, could you point me in the direction of the john?"

"The what?" the camp head asked.

"The toilet," Addy said.

"Oh, yes, right through that door," Miss Humble said.

"Thanks," Addy said and was off.

Miss Humble turned around. A moment later, Izzy approached her.

"Excuse me, Miss Humble," the polite Izzy said. "I seem to be having trouble finding the powder room."

"Again?" Miss Humble questioned, thinking that it was the same girl. "It's just right out those doors."

"Thank you," Izzy said, a bit confused about her initial response.

Izzy made her way into the bathroom just as a blonde was coming out of one of the stalls. Izzy walked into a stall, closing it just as Addy walked out of hers.

"That was fast," the blonde said, washing her hands.

"What was fast?" Addy asked, standing at the next sink.

The blonde lifted an eyebrow and then walked out. Addy was just a moment behind.

That evening, each cabin was given a list. It was a scavenger hunt. There would be s'mores for every cabin that finished, plus ice cream for the first finished.

"We absolutely must finish first," Addy said. "I love ice cream!"

"If we split the list into parts we can each get several items and meet back here quickly," Annie suggested.

"Yeah, let's do it," Hallie agreed.

"Cabin Four must win that ice cream," Izzy insisted.

"Half of these things are right up your alley, Izzy," Sharon said.

"Let's get going," Susan said.

"That's two pine needles from different types of pine trees," Addy said, throwing a second pine needle into the small bag she had.

"Oh, you don't want that leaf," Izzy warned Susan who almost grabbed a few leaves from a plant. "That's poison-oak."

Susan jumped back. "But, isn't this an oak tree?"

"The tree is," Izzy said, "but the plant climbing it isn't actually part of the tree."

"Thanks for warning me," Susan said.

"Have you got everything?" Addy asked when Hallie arrived. She and Annie had already double checked that they had everything on their lists.

"I think so," Hallie said.

"Then lets go," Addy said.

"That's the last item," Sharon said, dropping it into the bag.

"Hurry up, let's go!" Susan said.

"I'm going," Izzy said and took off at an incredible speed toward where Miss Humble was waiting for the teams to arrive.

"Cabin Eleven!" "Cabin Four!"

The two girls spoke at the same time, both having arrived in unison. They turned to look at one another, and both of their blue-green eyes widened in surprise.

"Isn't it interesting how twins would arrive at the same moment," Miss Humble said.

"Twins?" Addy asked. "We're not twins."

"I've never seen her before in my life," Izzy said.

"Well, that certainly is interesting then, isn't it," Miss Humble said. "Let's make sure both your cabins have all the items."

As they were drawing toward the end of the list, Addy looked over to see that Izzy had the same number of items left. However, as Izzy looked back up at Miss Humble as the head of camp read the items off the list, Addy was able to reach over and snatch a pine cone from Izzy's bag and slip it into her pocket.

"And finally, our last item, a pine cone," Miss Humble said.

"Got it right here," Addy said, holding up a full pine cone.

"And you?" Miss Humble questioned looking at Izzy.

"I... we did have it," Izzy said. "I know because I put it in the bag myself. I don't know where it could have gone."

"If you do not have a pine cone, then unfortunately your cabin has lost," Miss Humble said. "Congratulations cabin... um, which cabin were you again?"

"Cabin Eleven," Addy said. "I'm Addy Stoll."

Addy went cheering up to her cabinmates, and they all cheered, while Izzy drudged up to her friends.

"I know we had that pine cone," Susan said.

"I saw you put it in there yourself," Sharon added.

They looked over the Addy, Annie, and Hallie, and saw as Addy pulled a pine cone out of her pocket, and all three laughed.

"Not only did she steal your face, she stole our pine cone and our victory," Sharon said.

"This calls for a little payback," Izzy said. Her eyes traveled to the oak tree with the poison oak climbing up it. "And I think I have just the idea for it."

That night, after getting a second pine cone so that they could at least get the s'mores, while Cabin Eleven paraded around with their ice cream sundaes, Izzy, Susan, and Sharon managed to sneak into the kitchen and find the plastic gloves that whoever was preparing the food had to wear. In the middle of the night, they grabbed their gloves, and found several vines of poison oak. They then sneaked into Cabin Eleven and lined the poison oak up against the girls arms and even a few leaves on either side of Addy's face.

When the girls woke up the next morning, they all jerked into sitting position. There were leaves on them. Not to mention, they were all itchy.

"What are these leaves?" Annie asked, scratching the itching on her arms.

"Where did they come from?" Hallie asked.

"Oh, gods, this is poison oak," Addy yelled, throwing the leaves off her, She then could help the urge to scratch her face, which was incredibly itchy.

Upon arriving to breakfast, a lot of the other girls began to laugh as they had developed rashes and couldn't help but scratch their arms.

"What happened?" Izzy asked. "Wake up on the wrong side of the beds?"

Miss Humble shook her head. "Poison oak," she said. "You girls should really learn to tell what is going to do that to you."

"Oh, we'll be much more careful from now on," Addy insisted, resisting the urge to scratch her cheeks by scratching her arms.

Later that day, Izzy and Sharon had to search for half an hour before finding Susan had been locked in one of the bathrooms. And then, at lunch, when Sharon turned her head for just a moment to grab some salt and pepper, her food mysteriously disappeared. And at dessert, Izzy's hair somehow ended up dipped in her pudding.

This went on for several days. Cabin Eleven woke up one day to find cicadas and grasshoppers filled their room. Cabin Four's canoe was toppled while they were on the lake. The camp shirts of Cabin Eleven were all dyed a hideous yellow. Cabin Four's shoes were filled with mud. Cabin Eleven lost their electricity for several nights, including their precious air-conditioning. Which led the the biggest prank of all.

Through a full day of planning, and with a lot of strings and buckets, Hallie, Annie, and Addy spread honey or shaving cream on each of the girls in Cabin Four. The then spread oil on parts of the floor, and finally ended it with an impassable maze of string that, when certain strings were pulled hard enough, would cause melted ice cream, corn syrup, or cheese sauce, strategically placed that Sharon, Susan, and Izzy would each get covered by one.

They never suspected that a surprise inspection would take place the next morning.

"Good morning, girls," Miss Humble said, opening the door to Cabin Four. "What... what's this!"

The three girls all bolted awake, hitting strings. They each jumped from their beds, slipping on the oiled floor, and pulling even more strings as Miss Humble marched her way in.

"Miss Humble, no!" Addy yelled, seeing the head marching into the cabin. Suddenly, the bucket of ice cream that was intended for Izzy fell down, dousing the camp head.

"That is it!" Miss Humble yelled. "Gardner! Stoll! Pack your things. I've got a special cabin for you two."

"What about this mess?" Sharon asked.

"You two," she pointed at Sharon and Susan. She then wheeled around and pointed at Hallie and Annie on either side of Addy. "You two. You four will clean it up."

The whole camp followed as Miss Humble, after she cleaned herself up and allowed Addy and Izzy to pack, marched through the camp grounds to an isolated cabin. It was smaller than the other cabins, and even more rickety than the oldest of the camp cabins.

"There are five weeks of camp left," Miss Humble said. "You two will either learn to live with one another, or end up killing one another. I personally don't care which, but from now on, you two will do everything together."

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><p><strong>A few notes. First, Addy's roommates (Hallie and Annie) are the names of Lindsey Lohan's characters in the Parent Trap remake. Izzy's roommates (Sharon and Susan) are Haley Mills's characters from the original. Second, please read and review. I know, there wasn't any Tratie fun in this chapter, and probably just mention in the next, but if you've seen the Parent Trap, then you know how it goes. <strong>


	3. Twins

**Apparently Addy has more fan than Izzy. Don't really know how that happened. Hopefully Izzy will catch up with fan numbers by the end. Please Read and Review!**

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><p>Chapter 2 - Twins<p>

Izzy and Addy must have spent four hours staring at one another in hatred. Finally, it was Izzy that spoke. "Was that ice cream worth it?"

"It was your cabin or my cabin," Addy said.

"Um, generally a tie would have meant that we both would have gotten ice cream," Izzy said. "It's not like this is a sports league."

"Though, if it was, my cabin would have won," Addy said.

"Never mind," Izzy said, sitting crossed legged on her bed and turning around. She reached into her trunk and pulled out a book. Addy took her lead, only pulled out a magazine.

"What are you reading, anyway?" Addy asked.

"Not like it matters, but I'm reading _Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone_ in the original British printing," Izzy said. "Better than your magazine gossip."

"I'm going to go explore some," Addy said.

"Hey, no," Izzy said, standing up and blocking the door. "We're not allowed to leave until Miss Humble collects us for lunch."

"Well, I'm bored now," Addy said.

"If you leave, we'll be on punishment for even longer," Izzy said. "I didn't come here to spend the whole time on complete isolation punishment. So, for today, can you please just not do anything so that we can rejoin the activities tomorrow."

"I'll go crazy in here by tomorrow," Addy said.

"I'll lend you a book," Izzy said. "I've got five others..."

"I don't read much," Addy said. "Plus, I have ADHD, so a book can't really hold my attention."

"Can you please do this one thing for me," Izzy asked.

"Why should I?" Addy asked. "I've still got scratches from the poison oak."

"You stole my pine cone," Izzy said. "It was a little payback." She crossed her arms and mumbled. "Any child of Nemesis would have known that."

"What was that?" Addy asked.

"It was payback," Izzy repeated, enunciating each syllable as if talking to a small child.

"No, after that," Addy said. "What you said about Nemesis."

"That her children would have known it was payback?" Izzy asked.

"Why would you think that Nemesis would have children?" Addy asked.

"I'm surprised you know that Nemesis is a she," Izzy said. Addy frowned and made a fist, but Izzy quickly stepped back and continued to speak. "Why wouldn't I think that Nemesis couldn't have any children?"

"What makes you think any gods have children?" Addy asked, sounding suspicious.

"Why do you have to question me about it?" Izzy asked right back.

Addy frowned and sat down. She seemed to be deep in thought. A minute later, she was back in her stuff, pulling out her decorations. Izzy finally sat back down and opened her book again, but keeping an eye on Addy in case she should try to make a run for it again.

After pinning up several pictures from magazines, mostly of people like Mark Salling, Zac Efron, and a few pop singers like Lady Gaga, Addy set a framed picture on her nightstand. She looked at the picture again, and then asked, "Why did you choose this camp?"

"Huh?" Izzy looked up from her book. "What was that?"

"Why'd you choose to come to Camp Abner over any other camp?" Addy asked.

Izzy replaced her bookmark and put her book down. "Well, I guess it would probably be because I was trying to find a camp that was similar to the one my mother went to as a child. My mom talks about her days at camp a lot, but since I can't go to her camp, I choose one that had similar activities. Like, this camp is supposed to teach about how to fight with sword. As well as huge capture the flag games. Why do you ask?"

"Because, I came here because it was the closet to the camp my dad went to when he was a kid," Addy said. "But I can't go there either."

"Why can't you go to your dad's camp?" Izzy asked, shifting so that she was looking more at Addy. She was starting to sound very interested.

"Because neither of my parents is a god," Addy said. "Which is why you mentioning Nemesis caught my attention, because I _know_ that the gods do have kids. Granted, I often do think that my mother may be a goddess, because I have no idea who she is, and I'm not thirteen yet, so she wouldn't have had to claim me quite yet."

"Wait, your father went to Camp Half-Blood?" Izzy asked.

Addy looked back up. "You know about Camp Half-Blood?"

"That's where my mom went to camp," Izzy said. "And... did you just say that you don't know your mother?"

"Never heard a word about her spoken," Addy said. "I don't even know her first name. But, it's not like you've never met your father, is it?"

"Never even seen a picture of him," Izzy said.

"But if..."

"If you don't know your mother," Izzy said. "And I don't know my father. But we know that my mother and your father both went to Camp Half-Blood... then it's possible that... maybe..."

"No," Addy said. "It's impossible. Maybe... maybe... is your mother a child of Hermes? Maybe that's why we look so much alike. Because we're cousins..."

"My mother is a daughter of Demeter," Izzy said. Izzy closed her eyes. "What's your father's name?"

"What does that matter?" Addy asked.

"Because, about a year ago, I overheard my mother and grandfather talking," Izzy said. "And my grandfather mentioned a name... a name that I think is my father's name."

Addy's eyes began to swim a bit. "My dad's name is Travis Stoll."

Izzy gasped and covered her face with her hands. "Are you okay?" Addy asked after a moment.

"That's the name my grandfather mentioned," Izzy said, her words a little muffled by her hands. "Do you know what that means?"

"I'm hungry," Addy said. "Do you think maybe Miss Humble forgot about us."

"How can you think about your stomach when we're on the verge of a... Addy, I think that we're sisters!" Izzy said loudly.

"Impossible," Addy said. "Look, how old are you?

"I'll be thirteen on February twenty-first," Izzy said. "Would you stop avoiding the point! And why are you making that face?"

"Because I'll be thirteen on February twenty-first as well," Addy said.

Izzy stared at Addy for a few moments. "You know what that means, right?"

"Nothing," Addy said.

"We're not just sister, Addy," Izzy said. "We're twins... identical twins."

Addy turned to Izzy. She then looked the mirror. "We really are twins, aren't we." Izzy nodded.

They stared at one another for a moment, then walked right into one another's arms for a huge hug. Without either of them realizing, the door to the cabin opened. "Oh, my, I see you two seemed to have made up your differences," Miss Humble said. "I suppose you'll both be wanting to return to your other cabins now."

"Not at all," Addy said.

* * *

><p>"It must be amazing to live with our mom," Addy said that night. The two had decided to move their beds closer together so that they could stay up and talk.<p>

"It is," Izzy said. "But you've gotten dad all these years." She sighed. "What does dad do for a living anyway?"

"He's a corporate spy," Addy said.

"A spy?" Izzy asked, sitting up.

"Not like an international one," Addy said. "He goes to, like, conventions for businesses and finds out things for companies. Like, he'll go to an orthodontics convention and find out what places get better customers and figures out what those places have in common... well, actually, that's a boring example. But, yeah, companies hire him to find other companies secrets."

"Sounds exciting," Izzy said. "Does he make a lot of money doing that?"

"Yeah, he does," Addy said. "I mean, some companies pay more than other, but we've got a pretty large plot of land, it's very wooded, and a stable with three horses..."

"Three?" Izzy asked.

"Oh, my Uncle..."

"Your mean our uncle," Izzy interrupted her.

Addy smiled brightly. "Yeah, _our_ Uncle Connor lives with us. He's had rotten luck in this economy finding a job, so my dad gives him room and board so long as Uncle Connor cooks and cleans and fixes things up. But, yeah, we've got it pretty nice. What about Mom?"

"Oh, she's a florist," Izzy said. "She mostly makes bouquets and flower arrangements for weddings and is very popular. You know, we live in Orlando and we do a lot of work for Disney. They even wanted to hire Mother to be their primary florist and work exclusively for them, but she turned them down. But, her bouquets are the most beautiful in the world. They're so beautiful, sometimes people will fly her out to other locations just so that she'll do their wedding flowers. She does get a little help from her mothers powers, being able to grow plants and all. A lot of the time, I'll spend hours in the greenhouses with her, helping to nurture the plants, and finding flowers that need a little boost from her... But sometimes I think it's sad for her, doing all this work for so many weddings, and even being married... or even dating. What about Father? Does he date often?"

"No,"Addy said. "He's barely ever dated a woman long enough to even bother to bring home. Uncle Connor has a new girlfriend every few weeks, and he always says that he's finally found the one, but it never is, but Dad doesn't really date."

Izzy sighed. "I wish so much that I could meet him."

Addy sighed. "Yeah, I know what you mean," she said. She closed her eyes for a moment, before sitting bolt-right up. "Oh ma gawds! I am a total genius. I totally deserve a Nobel Prize."

"What gave you this conclusion?" Izzy asked, lifting an eyebrow up.

"Pure genius," Addy continued. "You know, you're lucky to have a sister that is so completely genius."

"What is it already?" Izzy asked, now sitting up as well.

"Well you want to know Dad, right?"

"More than anything," Izzy said. "That led you to seeing yourself as a genius?"

"Don't be a smart-mouthed like that," Addy said. "And I would kill to know all about Mom, more than what you can tell me."

"And...?"

"We should switch places!" Addy said.

Izzy stared at Addy for a few moments. "Are you mad?"

"Think about it," Addy said. "It's the only way we can really get to know what the other parent we haven't been living with for twelve years is like. And, hey, we are identical."

"In face, but outside we're two completely different people," Izzy said. "You've got ADHD and I don't, for one thing. Don't you think it will be weird that I came to camp without it and came home popping pills to control it."

"I don't use pills," Addy said. "I just do therapy when it seems to get worse. And, hey, we've got five weeks to teach each other to be us."

"Now you're just not making sense," Izzy said. "'Teach each other to be us?'"

"You know what I mean," Addy said. "I'll teach you to be me, and you teach me to be you. Please, oh please! I just gotta meet my mom. Every girl deserves to meet her mother."

Suddenly, the light hit Izzy's eyes. "Oh, now I've got a brilliant idea," Izzy said. "If we do switch, and I'm still not convinced that we actually can pull this off, eventually they will have to switch us back."

"Okay, not seeing the genius in that," Addy said.

"When they do, they'll have to see one another again," Izzy said. "And when they do, that old spark that made them fall in love with ignite again."

"That is genius," Addy said. "We are two brilliant sisters."

"Brilliant twins, is more like it," Izzy said. They both leaned back down against their pillows.

"This is so great," Addy said.

* * *

><p>"Okay, this is Papa," Izzy said showing Addy a picture.<p>

"Papa?" Addy asked.

"Our grandfather," Izzy said. "Mother always called him Papa when I was little and I picked up on it."

"Oh, he looks so nice," Addy said.

"He is," Izzy said. "He lives with us because we used to live with him a long time ago, and when Mother finally got enough money to move out, he couldn't bare to live without us. But, moving on, this is Henri, Mother's assistant. He's a bit flamboyant, but you'll love him. He's also got great fashion sense."

* * *

><p>"So, the front of the house," Addy said, showing Izzy a picture. "You enter and the staircase upstairs is about ten feet after the entrance. There are three bedrooms that look down on the landing. It's the one on the left side, has a big sign with my name on it, you cannot miss it."<p>

"Where do I shower, exactly?" Izzy asked.

* * *

><p>"There are five green houses," Izzy explained to Addy. "I'd say, try to avoid going to work with Mother because there is no way you'll be able to memorize where all the flowers are, especially as I can't even show you what they look like."<p>

* * *

><p>"I hope you're not allergic to dogs," Addy said. "Because this is Jessie, our Golden Retriever. He's supposed to be my responsibility, but Uncle Conner helps a lot for when he wakes up early in the morning. But, he gets three meals a day, one when he wakes up, one at about noon, and one about seven or so. There's a measuring cup in his bag of food, in the pantry, and it's just one scoop."<p>

* * *

><p>"Do we have to do this?" Izzy asked Addy.<p>

"Well, clearly my hair didn't grow that much while I was at camp," Addy said, motioning to her hair which was a good six inches shorter. "Plus, the bangs."

"Mother is going to flip about the green," Izzy said. "And how am I supposed to get a green streak in my hair?"

"With this," Addy said, pulling out a hair coloring kit. "Haven't you been wondering why my roots aren't showing for it?"

So, with Izzy clutching tightly to the seat of her chair, Addy approached with a pair of scissors and carefully cut Izzy's hair until it perfectly matched her own. Then with the dye, added a streak to Izzy's bangs. Once finished, they looked in the mirror.

"Now, we look identical," Addy said. "And you're finally almost as good-looking as me."

"Very funny," Izzy said. "Now we've got to do something about your nails."

"What do you mean?" Addy asked.

"They're way too long and pristine," Izzy said. "And really, green nail-polish."

"I like green," Addy said.

"Clearly."

* * *

><p>Before they knew it, the five weeks were up and camp was over. They hugged one another good-bye, and then Addy and Izzy went on their separate ways, Addy to Izzy's home in Florida and Izzy to Addy's home in Oregon.<p> 


	4. Addy in the Flowerbed

**Here's chapter three. Hope you like it.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 3 - Addy in the Flowerbed<p>

Addy bit her lip the entire way home. The lady in the seat next to her kept asking if she was going to Disney World, and if maybe she was a Disney Star, and would she like to sign an autograph for her niece.

Addy couldn't have been more glad when the plane set down again in Florida and she was able to get off. She looked around, hoping to see her mom, or even Papa, but couldn't see them. She headed to the baggage claim, and after reclaiming Izzy's suitcases, heard Izzy's name called out. She spotted a man, tall and gangly, wearing a pink tee shirt and black pants. She immediately recognized him as Henri, her mother's assistant.

"Henri," Addy said approaching him. "What a surprise."

"Your mother really wished she could be here right now, but the flowers for the O'Neil wedding aren't in full bloom, so she had to work a little late," Henri said. "She'll be home by the time we get there, so don't worry."

"I'm not," Addy said. "But let's get home so as not to keep Mother waiting." It felt weird to Addy to say that. She had been practicing all summer to refer to her mom as Mother.

"You, Isabelle Gardner, are one smart girl," Henri said, tapping Addy on the nose. "You are absolutely correct. Need me to help with your bag?"

"Nah, I got it," Addy said, lifting the suitcase that belonged to Izzy. It wasn't as easy to carry as her own duffle, but wasn't so bad. However, she noticed Henri lift an eyebrow.

"If you insist, Isabelle," Henri said.

Addy walked just behind him, wondering if everyone was going to call her Isabelle, of if that was something only Henri did.

"By the way, Isabelle, your new hair did not go unnoticed," Henri said.

"Oh, uh, yeah," Addy said. "Do you like?"

"Very much," Henri said, smiling at her. "Though, the green?"

"It was a camp thing," Addy quickly said. "Everyone got a streak of color in their hair the color of their cabin."

"Did they?" Henri asked.

Addy nodded vigorously. "Apparently it's a camp tradition as the end of the term," she added. "And, at least it looks good on me. This one friend I had named Annie who has red hair... ugh." Addy shook as if to indicate how bad it looked. It quickly occurred to Addy that she was acting nothing like Izzy. "I'm sorry, but I swear that everyone else there was a Cali-valley girl, and they must have rubbed off on me." She would have said they were like children of Aphrodite, but realized that she hadn't asked Izzy if Henri knew about that.

The ride from the airport to Izzy's home was shorter than Addy had expected. She personally had been on a train for hours when she had traveled from her home in Oregon to the camp with her uncle. She felt a little bad that Izzy would have to take the return ride alone.

When she walked in after being dropped off by Henri, Addy took a moment to take it all in. Izzy had tried to explain to Addy what she would be expecting, but it was grander than she had expected. The wood floors had to be made of mahogany, which complemented the eggshell walls. A dark table stood just next to the door with a set of keys in a ceramic bowl.

Addy put Izzy's suitcase down and went to examine a shuffling she heard from the cracked door, which she had been told would lead to Papa's office. She pushed the door and spotted tall man, maybe in his mid fifties. She couldn't be sure, but she suspected it was the man from Izzy's picture.

"P-" her voice caught in her throat for a moment. He seemed to have heard her anyway and turned to face her. He definitely was the man from Izzy's picture.

"My my, Izzy, you are home," he said, a wide smile spreading across his face. He opened his arms to approach her, but had barely taken more than a step before Addy ran forward and flung herself into his arms, wrapping her own arms tightly around his waist. She clung tightly to the man, and took a deep breath, smelling the aromas of several flowers.

"You've been to Mother's shop, haven't you," Addy said once they finally released one another and took a step back.

He smiled and stooped a little to her level to look into her blue-green eyes with his own green ones. Addy knew immediately where the green in her eyes came from, because they certainly weren't from her father.

"Now, how did you figure that out?" he asked, smiling at her still.

"I can smell it on you, Papa," Addy said. She smiled at him, seeing his greying black hair and a few wrinkles forming on his face. He didn't look like a man who would normally be a grandfather, at least no someone her age. She knew that her own parents had been young, just nineteen, but he must have been fairly young as well. Not necessarily as young, but nothing past his mid-twenties.

He lifted his shirt and then nodded. "Glad to see six weeks in the california wilderness hasn't dulled your ability to smell the roses." He reached up and fingered her hair. "Get a little scissor happy at camp?" he asked.

"I decided to go for a new look," Addy said.

"Well, your mother will certainly be surprised," Papa said.

"Where is Mother?" Addy asked, barely able to contain her excitement.

"She's probably in her office right now, Izzy," Papa said.

Addy's shoulders sagged a bit. "Oh, you mean she hasn't come home yet?" she asked.

"I suspect that she is in her home office, upstairs," Papa said. "She couldn't wait for you to come home. You ought to go see her before all the flowers wilt again."

"Again?" Addy asked.

"Oh, every flower in the house wilted for a week after you left, your mother missed you so much," Papa said. "They were all in full bloom this morning, expecting your arrival, but then she had some emergency at her work. She's home now, though."

Addy nodded and turned around. It was all she could do not to go pounding through the house to her mother's office. Once she was up the stairs, she slowly repeated to herself, "Left is my room and the bathroom, straight is Mother's room, right is her office." Arriving at the left, Addy slowly turned the handle, pushing the door open. Her mother was at a desk.

"Papa, is that you?" Katie asked, not turning around. "I was thinking that we all go to Georgie's tonight for dinner in celebration of Izzy's return. She was typing numbers into her calculator as she spoke. "What do you think?"

Addy could feel her eyes water a bit, hearing her mother's voice for the first time. She had no idea what she had expected. She would have been happy if her mother sounded like a frog. She had never imagined that it would be so beautiful, and immediately Addy loved it even more. The voice was soft and kind and almost musical.

"I'd like that very much," Addy said.

Katie spun in a stunned silence. Before Addy was able to take a step forward, Katie had closed the gap between them and pulled Addy into a tight embrace. "Izzy, my Izzy, you're home. Oh, I have never missed anyone so much in my life. Any longer and I would have called you home early from that camp."

Addy noticed that every flower in the room, which was several, as well as the plants she could see outside the window all bloomed like crazy. Even some morning glories, which she only knew because a few grew at her own home.

"Hello, Mother," Addy said, barely able to speak she was in so much shock. She wrapped her arms around her mom's waist and pulled her close. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly, so as not to cry. "I've missed you too, Mother."

Addy's only surprise was that her mother was shorter than she suspected. Papa had been a bit taller of a man, and Addy and Izzy were both sort of tall, for their age at least. But her mother was only average height, and Addy just just about two inches shorter. Still, it didn't bother her because, for the first time ever, at least in Addy's memory, she was being held by her mother.

"What have you done with your hair?" Katie questioned when they released from the embrace a full minute later. "You have green bangs."

"Only one green streak," Addy said. "It was a camp thing."

"And you've lopped off half of it," Katie said.

Addy looked a little disappointed. "You hate it, don't you?"

Katie shook her head. "It's a new look, and you look great," she said. "Did Henri cry at the sight and weep for your long locks?"

"No, I think he waited until after he dropped me off to run off and do that," Addy said. She looked at her mother, and then hugged her once more for good measure.

An hour later had Addy and her mother out side, hanging all of Izzy's clothes, fresh out of the washing machine, to dry outside.

"Now, please, tell me everything about what you did at camp," Katie said. "Did you make a bunch of friends? What kind of plants could you identify? I want to know everything."

"Everything?" Addy asked. "Well, I did meet a bunch of girls, some were nice, and some, well, not so much. We had a scavenger hunt the first night and my cabin won, thanks to yours truly." Addy smiled, and Katie smiled back.

"What else?" Katie asked.

"Well, I spotted some poison oak that another girl thought was just a growth from the tree and stopped her from touching it."

"Oh, I'm so proud of you," Katie said.

Suddenly, Henri entered the yard from a side gate. "Yes, I will tell her right off," he spoke into a cell phone. He covered the mouth piece. "Miss Gardner, Vera Wang is doing a photo shoot and wants to know if you can make four bouquets for them by tomorrow," he said.

"Tomorrow?" Katie said. "I can do my best." She looked at Addy. "Izzy, darling, how would you like to join me at the shop?"

"Oh, I'd love to," Addy said, even though Izzy had advised her to not go.

Katie smiled, then turned back to Henri. "Tell them to fax me over what they want in each bouquet and Izzy and I will be ready just as soon as we finish hanging these clothes up."

"Certainly, Miss Gardner," Henri said. "I'll go get the car." He turned around and began speaking into the phone again.

Addy took a few deep breaths walking into Katie's Floral Arrangements, the shop that Katie had started from. She marveled at all the different flowers, the colors, their beauty and the aroma.

Katie walked to the back office and returned a minute later with a sheet. "Okay, let's get to work," she said. "Grab a basket, if you could." Addy was glad that Katie had motioned to where the basket's were or she never would have found them. She then followed Katie to the back into the green houses. Addy's amazement grew at he size of the green house, and she knew that there were several more.

Katie and Addy walked through, Katie selecting flowers of all sorts, most Addy could barely name. There were roses, orchids, lilies, sunflowers, tulips, and as they kept going through the green houses, Katie selected more and more until the basket was filled. They then returned to the shop and into Katie's work room. Here, Katie had other things for decorating bouquets, such as feathers, ribbons, and rhinestones.

"I guess I've really got my work cut out, don't I," Katie said, looking at the faxed requests. "Izzy, I'm terribly sorry, but can we go to Georgie's tomorrow?"

"That's certainly fine, Mother," Addy said. She sat down and tried to hand her mother the flowers she requested, when she knew what they were. Then she started separating out the flowers for the other three bouquets, until she ran out of flowers she could actually name. Instead, Katie started looking at all the different bouquets that were already in the refrigerator. And then she began to run her fingers through the feathers, and felt the soft ribbons, and examined the lace.

"As long as you're over there, could you grab me a few white feathers and a bit of tulle?" Katie asked, snapping Addy out of her thoughts.

"Of course," Addy said. She looked at the feathers. "What size feathers?"

"Five to six inches should do it," Katie said.

Katie selected several feathers of the requested size and a small square of tulle. Katie asked Addy to hold it while she cut the ribbon for it. When it was done, Addy was surprised that it was so beautiful.

"I can't believe that you made this," Addy said, holding it like she was a bride. "It's absolutely gorgeous."

"Yes, it is," Katie said. "Now, let's keep it that way and put it into the fridge."

As Katie got to work on the second bouquet, Addy looked over the lists and grabbed more feathers and swatches of fabric for the rest of the bouquets, but that didn't take very long at all. Finally, she spotted the computer in the corner. She signed on and looked up pictures of the flowers she didn't recognize the names of, so she finished sorting them into their appropriate baskets.

"You are all over the place, today, Izzy," Katie said. "And here I thought you might be tired after six weeks of constant activity."

"I can't help it, Mom...Mother," Addy said. "I guess it's all the fresh air that gave me this energy boost mixed with the excitement of finally being home again."

"It is a little distracting," Katie said. "And, though you know I love you more than anything in the world, I do need to concentrate. I could really use this promotion for the shop."

"Right," Addy nodded. "I'll just stay on the computer and read some fanfics."

"Fanfics?" Katie asked, lifting one brown eyebrow.

"Stories," Addy said quickly. "One of my friends at camp was really into them... and I'm reading now." She turned to the computer and began typing a URL until Katie was focusing on the flowers again. She then Googled Georgie's to see what kind of restaurant they were planning on going to. She was relieved that it was like TGIF or Applebee's. She then signed onto her e-mail address to see all that she had missed while at camp. It didn't take her long to delete all the junk and read the few actual letters she had gotten from her friends from school. She replied that she was busy with family things and wouldn't be able to see them until closer to school. And then, she e-mailed Izzy.

_I love Mom! Things are going GREAT! You forgot to tell me that Henri always calls you Isabelle. I'm not so sure he likes me. Mom loves my hair, BTW. At her shop right now. Reply soon._

She didn't sign it. She wrote 'Miss You Already!' in the topic line, and then sent it to Izzy, hoping that Izzy would get it soon.

After that, Addy made sure the sound of the computer was off and found a free Bubble Shooter website, which usually occupied her for much longer than most games usually held her attention.

As Katie was beginning the third bouquet, Addy turned back to her mother. "Doesn't making wedding bouquets ever make you want to create a super-duper bouquet for your own wedding?" Addy asked.

"My _own_ wedding?" Katie asked, quite surprised.

"Yeah," Addy went on. "Or do you remember what your bouquet was like when you, say, married my father..."

"You father?" Katie asked. She shook her head. "We had a very simple wedding in front of a judge. I didn't even have a bouquet until I arrived at the restaurant where the reception was, and really it was just the roses from all the tables tied together, and I only made it because the girls all insisted that I toss it to them."

"Speaking of your wedding, do you ever think about him?" Addy asked.

Katie didn't need to ask who she was referring to. She shook her head, then stopped. "Actually, I do," Katie said. "Every time I look into your eyes, except right now they look so green because of that green in your hair. But, when you're wearing blue and your eyes are reflecting that, it's like I'm looking into his eyes."

"So you miss him," Addy said.

This time, when Katie shook her head no, she didn't change her answer. "In reality, he should only have ever had been a summer fling. But I don't regret marrying him. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have you. Now, why do you want to know all this, Izzy?"

"What girl doesn't want to know about her father?" Addy asked, leaning back. "You had to know it was coming. I want to know more."

"Not happening, Izzy, Baby," Katie said. "I'm not going to talk about him when I am making wedding bouquets."

"But they're not even for a wedding," Addy argued. "They're for a photo shoot, Mother." Katie sent Addy a glare for just a moment. "At least tell me his name."

Katie sighed. "You really want to know?"

"Yes!"

"Fine," she said. "His name was Travis."

* * *

><p><strong>So, what did you think about it? Do you like Henri and Papa? How about the interaction between Katie and Addy? Next chapter, Izzy arrives at her dad's home.<strong>


	5. The Linda Woman

**Thanks to all my readers and reviewers. I hope this keeps you guys happy.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 4 - The Linda Woman<p>

Izzy was deeply involved in her book when she heard the name of the station that she was getting off at called. She grabbed Addy's suitcase and shoved the book in the side compartment, knowing that the last thing Addy would be doing was reading a book, though Izzy had a feeling that Addy would actually enjoy _The Hunger Games_.

She was standing at the doors before the train came to a complete stop, and was out the doors before they even finished opening. She looked around, knowing that her Uncle Connor was supposed to be the one to pick her up. However, looking around, she didn't spot him.

"Addy, Sweetheart," she heard her twin's name and turned around. Despite knowing that they did look similar, when Izzy turned around, she knew it wasn't her uncle, but her father that had come to pick her up.

Izzy blinked back her tears, bit her lip, and then went running as best she could through the crowd and right into his arms. "Oh, Dad, I'm so glad to see you."

"I'm glad to see you, Addy," Travis said. "Man, you're getting so tall. Did you grow over summer?"

Izzy shrugged. "Maybe," she said. "What happened to Uncle Connor? I thought he was supposed to pick me up."

"I decided I wanted to be the first to see you back," Travis said. He reach out and flicked the green in her bangs. "I see you're still going green in your own special way."

"Uh, yeah," Izzy said. "But I've decided to grow that out, Dad. All that nature made me appreciate the natural beauty of everyone and everything."

"Oh, has it now?" Travis asked.

Izzy nodded. "Indeed," she said.

"Well, let's get you home and get some food into your stomach," Travis said, grabbing the duffle. "By the way, I hope you hated that place, because I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

"That might put a damper on your ability to do your job, Dad," Izzy said. "But, how are Uncle Connor and Jessie doing? And Sunshine?"

"They're the same as when you left," Travis said, arriving at the large black truck. He tossed the duffle into the bed of the truck and then crawled in to drive. Izzy struggled to get into the passenger side. "But, you're the one who just had six weeks at a summer camp. How was that for you?"

"Oh, it was great," Izzy said. She closed the door and buckled up. She sat straight with her ankles crossed. Apparent Travis noticed.

"What, I don't have to remind you to buckle any more?" Travis asked, starting up the car before he even buckled.

"Well, you know, the number one easiest thing a person can do for their health is to buckle up," Izzy said.

"Where'd you learn that?" Travis asked.

"A girl at camp," Izzy said. "Her father writes self-help books."

Izzy smiled and looked at her father. "I'm so happy to be here, seeing you for the first time..." Travis's blue eyes slowly turned toward Izzy, which she noticed. "In six weeks that is. I just missed you so much, almost as if I had never even seen you."

"Does that mean you're actually going to clean your room if I as you?" Travis asked.

"If you'd like me to, then of course," Izzy said.

Travis stopped the car. "Okay, who are you and what have you done with Addison Lily Stoll?"

Izzy's eyes went wide. How could he have figured it out so quickly? Was she that obvious? She knew it must have been the idea of her cleaning her room. "Granted, we'd have to negotiate a price," she said. "I'd say fifty dollars an hour would be a sufficient wage, paid breaks of course, and food provided."

Travis laughed a bit and began driving again. "For a moment there I almost thought that maybe my daughter had been abducted," he said. "Anyway, good luck getting a job in the future with those kinds of demands."

Izzy sighed in relief. She knew that Addy must have been having an easier time than she was.

Before she knew it, they pulled up to the stately manor which the Stolls lived in. The track had barely pulled to a complete stop before the front door was opened and a man who could almost be Travis's twin came hobbling out, smile wide on his slightly bruised face.

"Oh em gee!" Izzy said loudly, after regaining her composure and embodying Addy as best she could. "Uncle Connor, what happened to you?"

"What do you mean?" Connor asked, smiling and Izzy noticed a missing tooth, granted, she had no way of knowing if this was a new development or not. Before she could inquire, Connor had pulled Izzy into a tight hug. "Oh, Addy, it has been far too long. I don't know what your father was thinking allowing you to go to such a camp. You could have been attacked, or gotten poison oak, or... who knows what."

"By the looks of it, you're the one who ran into some trouble," Izzy said, after returning the hug.

"Oh, this," Connor referred to his bruised face, and his slight limp. "It was nothing."

"Someone got into a fight with an Empousa," Travis said. "Had to have his big brother bail him out of trouble."

"Hey, I had it completely under control," Connor argued. "I was only making her think that she had the upper hand to get her to under estimate my abilities."

"And if I hadn't stepped in, my daughter would be coming home to an urn instead of an uncle," Travis said, grabbing Addy's bags from the trunk.

Izzy looked between the two, and then tightly latched onto Connor, glad that she still had an uncle. She didn't know what she would do if she had come home to find that Addy's uncle had been killed.

As soon as she released Connor, who smiled down at her, a dog came bounding out of the house. It jumped up and hit Izzy with such force that the girl was knocked down.

"Jessie!" Izzy squealed and hugged the dog as she was being thoroughly sniffed.

"Forget how strong hurricane Jessie is or something?" Connor asked, helping Izzy back to her feet. He dusted off her shoulders. "And why is this dog still sniffing as if she didn't know who you are or something?"

"Oh, well, I probably smell like a foreign place still," Izzy reasoned. "I mean, the foliage here is quite different from what we had at camp. Plus, there were other animals. I probably do smell like a totally different girl. A shower will change that, I'm sure."

"Well come in," Connor said and the two went inside, finding that Travis had taken the bags up to her room.

"Hey, Connor, something smells good for once," Travis called down as he began down the stairs again. "What are you cooking?"

"Chili," Connor said. "Real, Texas chili in celebration of someone's homecoming." Connor looked at Izzy. "Look at her, Travis. Our Addy's still growing."

"Yeah, she's also growing a smart mouth as well," Travis said, ruffling the hair on her head for a moment. "Anyway, hurry up and eat something, get unpacked, and come out back. Will you?"

"Sure thing, Dad," Izzy said. She watched her dad go into the kitchen, and then saw someone out back through the dining room window.

"Get up to your room, missy," Connor said. "I'll bring you up some chili in a moment."

"Who's that woman in the backyard?" Izzy asked.

"Up," Connor said, pointing up the stairs.

Once Izzy was up in Addy's room, she looked out the window, but found that it looked out the front yard rather than the backyard. She looked around, quickly familiarizing herself with Addy's stuff, opening each drawer just enough to know what it kept, peeking in the closet, which was such a mess, Izzy wouldn't have been surprised if a family of squirrels lived in it. There were shoes on the floor, and Izzy was sure that not all of them had a match, the bed was unmade, there were at least five bags in various places, and the bookshelves held exactly one book, which was a dictionary, while the rest of it was covered in framed pictures and small trinkets and even a rubber duck.

"Hey, kiddo," Connor said, entering the room. He set down two bowls of chili and a plate of bread. "What's on your mind?"

"Huh?" Izzy looked at Connor.

"Well, you're looking around your room like you've never been in here before," Connor said. "Not to mention, I brought in chili and you didn't tackle me to get some."

"Oh, I didn't even think about it," Izzy said, looking around. There wasn't a chair at the desk. But, Connor had taken a lead and sat on the foot of her bed, so Izzy sat near the pillows. She then took a tentative spoonful and slipped it into her mouth. It was surprisingly delicious, for a few seconds, before her mouth began to burn.

"What's wrong, Addy?" Connor asked, noticing how quickly Izzy put my bowl down and looked around, as if she would find a faucet in Addy's room.

"It's really hot," she said. "I need something to drink."

Connor lifted an eyebrow. "Okay, I'll get you a glass of milk then," he said, setting his half eaten chili down as well. "Munch on bread until I get back."

By the time Connor returned with milk, Izzy had eaten most of the bread. She smiled at him and took a long swallow of the glass's contents. "Who is that woman in the backyard?" she finally asked.

"Huh?" Connor asked. Then seemed to remember. "Oh, her name is Linda. She's a daughter of Aphrodite your father met while at a conference about fashion magazines. Well, you know how it is with children of Aphrodite, right?"

"Not entirely," Izzy said. "I didn't get to go to Camp Half-Blood, remember." That was one thing Izzy knew Addy had wanted to actually do.

"Oh, touche," Connor said. "Well, she's young, and beautiful, and so the moment she found out your father is an accomplished demigod himself, she began finding out more about him. When she saw him take down the Empousa that turned me into chop suey, well, she has done her best to stick to his side since."

"So, she basically wants Dad to be her personal protector?" Izzy asked.

"I'm not sure exactly what she wants," Connor said. "But I doubt that she's all that into him. After all, your dad may be good with a sword and all, but he's not all too entirely smooth when it comes to the ladies. So, I asked myself why a young daughter of Aphrodite is into my brother, why not one of the other better looking, more suave demigods around the country, and then it occurred to me exactly what she was into, and it all happens to be in the bank."

"So you think she's only into him for his money?" Izzy asked.

"Well, don't listen to me, Addy," Connor said. "Go meet her for yourself and make your own judgment on her."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Ads, there you are," Travis said as Izzy approached the pool where Travis was sitting talking to Linda. "I'm glad you're here. I'd like you to meet Linda Belle."<p>

Izzy looked at the woman, wearing a tight black dress underneath a cream-colored wide-brimmed hat. She looked up and Izzy was shocked be the stunning woman underneath. She had tanned skin, bright blue eyes, and a few beautiful layers of dark brown hair. Her face was delicate, with soft clear skin, a lightly pointed chin, high cheek bones, full cherry-red lips, and a perfect ski jump nose. If Izzy hadn't known better, she would think that the woman was Aphrodite in the flesh.

"Hello, Linda Belle," Izzy said, unsure of what else to say.

"Wow, I have been waiting to meet you, Addy," Linda said, sounding, in some ways, excited. Izzy had to assume the woman was a good actress.

"Really?" Izzy asked. "You've wanted to meet me?"

"Totally," Linda said. "You know, the way your father was talking about you all summer, I thought you'd be practically a little girl, but you are quite grown up and so beautiful."

"Well, I am twelve and a half," Izzy said. "And, how old, exactly, are you?"

Travis and Linda both managed a small laugh. "I'm just about to turn twenty-one at the end of August."

"So, you're, what, just eight years older than me?" Izzy asked. "And, how old are you again, Dad?"

"Wow, when did you get so into math, Ads?" Travis asked. "Look, I'm gonna head in for a moment, and get myself some more of that delicious chili and maybe a bottle of wine to celebrate."

"What are we celebrating?" Izzy asked, furrowing her brow.

Travis paused for a moment, but Linda didn't miss a beat. "Your return home, of course."

"So, why are you getting wine?" Izzy asked. "Neither Linda nor I can have any."

"She's allowed to have a little wine so long as she doesn't plan to go anywhere for the next few hours," Travis said. "And I'll get you a bottle of root beer. How does that sound?"

"It sounds good," Izzy said.

"Either of you want some chili?" Travis asked.

"Oh, no, I'm too full," Izzy said. "But I'm sure Linda would love to try some."

"Can't," Linda said. "Vegetarian, remember, Travis?"

"That's right," Travis nodded. "You don't know what you're missing." With that, he pecked a kiss on the top of Izzy's head and turned to go back to the house.

Linda's phone went off a moment later. Izzy lifted an eyebrow, wondering why Linda even had one, being a Half-Blood and all. She began to strip down to her bathing suit, listening in to Linda's side of the conversation.

"A benefit, oh, yes, I am writing it all down," Linda said, even though she was just inspecting her nails. "A costume event. Oh, well, I'm sure that Mr. Stoll would love to attend, but sadly he will be away on business on that date, but I will be sure to inform him. Certainly. Goodbye."

"My dad's going away on business again so soon?" Izzy asked.

"What, oh, not really?" Linda said. "But your father doesn't want to attend some silly costume benefit. It was just a little white lie and won't hurt anyone."

"Why are you answering calls like that for him anyway?" Izzy asked. "I thought you worked for a fashion magazine, according to my Uncle Connor."

"Oh, no, I'm an assistant," Linda said. "The woman I worked for had to attend the conference where I met your father. But, your father is a very busy man, and I thought that he could use my assistance than my previous employer. But enough about me, I want to hear about you."

"Me?" Izzy asked. "Really?"

"Of course," Linda said. "I have never heard a man talk about any woman before, not like the way your father talks about you. The first time he mentioned you, the light in his eyes... you two are obviously very close to one another."

"We are," Izzy said. "After all, it's always been just him and me and Uncle Connor, but my dad and his brother, well, you know how sibling rivalry works. But Dad and I, we're like two peas in a pod."

With that, Izzy jumped into the pool, causing a huge splash. Linda jumped to her feet, having gotten just a few drops of water on her dress. "Oh, I'm sorry," Izzy said. "Did I get you wet, Linda?"

"Oh, not too much," Linda said. She took off her hat and shook out her hair before brushing the few drops of water away. She then took a few steps closer. "Guess what. You dad took me riding the other day and he let me ride your horse. I hope that was alright."

"That's fine," Izzy said. "Sunshine is used to strange women riding her. I'm not implying that you are strange, or anything, though, actually, compared to the others, you're relatively normal."

"Others?" Linda asked.

"You want me to dish up the dirt?" Izzy asked. "Well, I don't blame you. I'd want to know too if I was number... let's see, she was thirty-two, so that would make you number thirty-three..."

"Thirty-three?" Linda asked.

"Yeah, it's always the same routine," Izzy said. "Horseback riding through the woods, candlelit dinners on the patio, star-gazing from the roof, a bottle of his favorite merlot..."

"Here we are," Travis called, coming up with a tray of things. "Root beer for the little one," he set the bottle of root beer down next to the pool in Izzy's reach. "And a bottle of my favorite merlot." He opened it and poured a glass for him and Linda each. "So, did you girls find something to talk about?"

Izzy took a deep breath and dove under the water. Linda smiled and took a gentle sip of her glass. "We did," she said. "You know, you must know all the stars, and out here, they must be beautiful at night..."

"Oh, they are," Travis said. "There's this great spot on the roof with a clear view, and tonight it's supposed to be clear and beautiful."

* * *

><p><strong>So, how do you guys like it so far? Is it too similar to the movie? I had a little trouble with this chapter, which is why it is longer, but I hope to get the next one out faster. I have begun writing it already, so that should help.<strong>


	6. Crossed Signals

**Thanks to all my reviewers! Anyway, here's the next chapter. I do have the next chapter written and I'm working on the chapter after that! I also have a big twist planned.**

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><p>Crossed Signals<p>

A ringing telephone brought everyone to attention at the Gardner residence the next morning. At the time, Papa was pouring the morning coffee, and Katie and her daughter were working at preparing the breakfast as Henri, over early as he was every morning, was simply looking through the appointments that Katie had that day.

"Oh, Henri, could you get that?" Katie called out to him from the kitchen. "We've all got our hands dirty."

"Certainly, Miss Gardner," Henri replied and hurried to the phone in the hall. "Gardner residence, this is Henri speaking." There was a pause for a moment. "Isabelle?"

"Yes, Henri?" Addy called out from in the kitchen. He looked at her.

"I'm sorry, but it sounded like you were on the phone," he said to her, holding the phone to his shoulder for a moment. "To whom did you wish to speak? Ah, Isabelle." He looked at the young girl. "It's for you. A Susan Bones... now why does that name sound familiar?"

"Thanks," Addy said, wiping her hands off quickly before grabbing the phone. "Susan, so good to hear from you! How was your return trip home?"

"It was fine," Izzy said, sitting on the window sill of Addy room and trying not to be too loud, as it was four in the morning in Oregon. "How are things going for you?"

"Oh, I'm doing well, thank you for asking," Addy replied. "But, could you hold on for a moment, Susan, dear?"

"Sure, but hurry, I need to talk to you," Izzy said.

Addy slipped away, slipping into the basement, as the phone was one of the old ones still attacked to its base with a wire. "Oh em gee, Izzy," she cried in her most excited whisper, "Mom is so amazing. And she's even more beautiful in person than the pictures."

Izzy sighed. "But-"

"And, I got her talking about how she and dad got together and about them."

"Would you hang on for a moment," Izzy tried to interrupt her.

"And if you ask me-"

"Addy stop already, we've got a major problem on our hands."

"Did Dad find you out?" Addy asked.

"No, but-"

"Then I see no problem," Addy said.

"You're going to have to bring Mother out here immediately," Izzy said.

"Immediately?" Addy asked. "But I've only had one day with her. I still barely know her. It's not happening!"

"But this is an emergency," Izzy said. "Dad's in love."

Addy laughed. "Dad doesn't fall in love," she said. "We talked about this. It's probably not nearly as serious as you think."

"Trust me, he is serious about this girl," Izzy said. "She's a daughter of Aphrodite and she's got him wrapped around her finger."

"Are you sure," Addy said. "Well, just, break them up. Sabotage her. It shouldn't be too hard."

"You think I'm not trying?" Izzy asked. "You do know that she does have an advantage over me, being as I just met Father today. Addy, you need to come here to help me."

"Izzy, I can't," Addy said. "I need more time with Mom! And that's final." With that, she hung up.

"Thanks for all the help, Ads," Izzy said, frowning at the phone.

Addy crept out of the basement, but came face to face with three very confused grown-ups. "I had a phone call from a friend at camp," she said.

"And you brought it into the basement because?" Katie asked.

"Camp tradition," Addy said. "Talk to a friend from a stairwell, and it was the closest one... I know it's stupid but who am I to break tradition?" She put the phone back where it belonged. "So, how about we finish making breakfast?"

* * *

><p>"And, here's what we've got for today," Connor said, bringing a few plates to the table Izzy was sitting at. "We've got all your food groups. Delicious, fatty, sugary, and high energy." He pointed to a glass of apple juice, a plate of bacon, two slices of cinnamon sugar toast, and some eggs in turn. "It all smells and looks so good, I kind of want to eat it all myself."<p>

"Thanks Uncle Connor," Izzy said looking at the food.

"Okay, what's gotten into you?" Connor asked.

"Nothing, why?" Izzy asked.

"Well, you always gorge yourself at breakfast," Connor said. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine," Izzy said. "Where's Dad?"

"Oh, he and 'I'll have just a half a grapefruit' went out over an hour ago do a little shopping but should be back soon," Connor said. "You over slept and Travis didn't want to wake you." He took one of the slices of bacon and nibbled on the end as Izzy took a sip of apple juice. "Granted, I'd probably oversleep myself if I was up at four in the morning making mysterious phone calls to who knows who."

Izzy froze for a moment, then slowly swallowed. "Oh, that was a friend from camp, Susan," Izzy said. "She lives in Hawaii."

"Oh, so you decided it would be a good idea to call her when it was convenient for her because of the time difference," Connor said.

"Exactly," Izzy said.

"So you called her at one in the morning her time?"

Izzy's eyes widened. "Well, it would have been one her time, but it was actually it was just about noon for her because, well, she lives in Hawaii, but she's currently in England with her family."

"I'm sure," Connor said, clearly not believing Izzy. "Well, eat up, Ads, you don't want to still be hungry when your father gets home."

Izzy nodded and began eating as much as she could without over doing it.

An hour later Travis walked into the house. Izzy was just finishing getting ready for the day. "Addison, where you at, girl?" Travis called.

"Coming, Dad," Izzy replied. She came down the stairs wearing jean capris, a tee shirt, and a light zip-up hoodie.

"You look ready to go riding, squirt," Travis said, smiling at her. "Who told you?"

"Uncle Connor," Izzy said. "You really think he could keep a secret from this face?" Izzy pouted for a moment.

"Yeah, I suppose not," Travis said. "But, come on, I want to talk to you, so let's get going."

"So, what do you want to talk about, exactly?" Izzy asked once they were making their way across the yard to where the stable was. "Because, I have something to talk to you about as well."

"How about you go first," Travis said.

"No, Dad, I insist that you start off," Izzy said.

"Okay, I want to talk to you about Linda," Travis said.

"And I want to talk to you about my mother," Izzy said. They both stopped walking at the same time and turned to one another. "What about Linda?"

"What about your mother?" Travis asked. Izzy noticed that his usual relaxed state seemed to have stiffened, if even for just a moment.

"Dad, I'm twelve... and a half," Izzy said. "I'm heading toward my teenage angst years and there are a lot of things that girls need their mothers for. Things that they can't really talk about with their dads."

"Hey, Addy, you know you can talk to me or your Uncle Connor about anything," Travis said.

"Tampons," Izzy said.

"Except that," Travis nodded. "But that actually brings me to Linda."

"Hey you two!" Izzy slowly turned around and spotted Linda down at the road in a yellow convertible. Izzy began walking onto the stable as Travis approached Linda.

"You're a bit early," Travis said to her once they were in regular talking distance.

"I couldn't wait," Linda said. "So, did you tell her?"

"Almost," Travis said. "Actually, I was just words away when you drove up."

"I was thinking, how about lunch at RiGorgios?" Linda said. "You know, to test the atmosphere..."

"Sorry, Lynn, but I did promise Addy the whole day with me," Travis said. "We thought we'd picnic or something. How about you head to the house and start picking out where you want the ceremony, set up appointments for us to check them out, all that jazz."

"Sure thing," Linda said, leaning toward Travis. Travis leaned toward her, over the edge of the car and kissed her sweetly on the mouth. From where Izzy was in the stables, she fake gagged and turned to the horses. "Okay, now, how do I harness you up?"

A little later, father and daughter were riding through the woods on their horses. As Izzy didn't know the trails, Travis kept pulling ahead whenever they tried to race. However, when they arrived at the top of a large hill, they stopped.

"This spot always reminds me of Camp Half-Blood," Travis said. "The hill, the huge tree..." he motioned to a pine tree just next to him. "It's why I decided to buy this specific plot of land, you know."

"That's amazing, Dad," Izzy said. "It must remind you of your childhood a lot. Were you happy?"

Travis nodded. "Mostly. I mean, like anyone, I had my ups and downs, but a lot of the ups came from Camp Half-Blood." She shook himself from his reverie. "So, excited for our camping trip?"

"Camping trip?" Izzy asked.

"Don't tell me you forgot," Travis began to tease her a bit. "The one we take every year before school starts again."

"Oh, yeah," Izzy said. "It's just so engrained in my mind that I hardly even think of it. For a moment, I thought you had meant that you had created a different trip."

Travis laughed a bit, but then got serious again. "So, Addy... Addison... what do you think of Linda?"

"As what, Dad?" Izzy asked. "As your assistant? Your friend?"

"No, just... what do you think of her?" Travis asked.

"You need to be more specific than that, Dad," Izzy said. "How am I supposed to have an opinion about her when I don't know in what respect you're asking about her from?"

"As a person, then," Travis said.

"Oh, Dad, that's an unfair question to ask, really," Izzy said. "I mean, sure, she's pretty, and she drives a sweet ride, but aside from that, she's really a stranger to me in pretty much all respects. I mean, she's had weeks to learn about me from you, but I didn't even know she existed until yesterday."

"Okay, true," Travis said. "But, I'm asking you this because-"

"Race you back, Dad!" Izzy said and steered Sunshine off back the way she came as quickly as she could. Luckily for her, Sunshine seemed to know the way. She closed her eyes tightly as she heard her father calling after her. She just couldn't bear to hear him say exactly what she knew he was about to tell her.

Before she knew it, she was back at the stables. She quickly tied up Sunshine, and then went running back to the house as fast as she could.

"This is not good," Izzy said, pacing back and forth, walking into the living room from the back entrance. "This is _so_ not good. What am I going to do?"

"Well, you could explain to me why you're talking to yourself for starters," Connor said, following Izzy inside as she had walked right past him without giving him a second glance.

Izzy, of course, hadn't expected a response and jumped about half a foot in the air. "Uncle Connor," she said, pressing her hand to her heart. "What are... you surprised me. What are you doing here?"

"I live here," Connor said. "You're supposed to be off riding with your dad, Addy, so, what are you doing here?"

"Nothing," Izzy said. "Our ride ended early..."

"Okay, what's on your mind?" Connor asked, leaning against the wall.

"What do you mean?" Izzy asked.

"Well, you come back from camp, and it's almost like you're a whole new person," Connor said. "Jessie doesn't seem to recognize you," and he ticked off a finger, "that's for sure. You've picked up more manners than your father and me combined." He ticked off another finger. "You helped with the laundry and dishes and put your shoes away," Three more fingers. "How about how my mild chili is suddenly too hot for you?"

"It's nothing, really," Izzy said, unable to look Connor in the eye. "I guess camp changed me a lot."

Connor looked at her. "If you insist," he said. He pushed himself off the wall and said, "You know, if I didn't know any better I think you were..." he stopped and looked at her. "But, no, that's impossible." He turned to return to whatever he had been doing.

"Almost as if I were who, Uncle Connor?" Izzy asked.

"Forget I mentioned it," Connor said looking at her for a moment. "There's unlikely and then there's impossible." He turned back around.

"Almost as if I were... Izzy?" the young brunette asked.

Connor froze, his face one of complete shock, before he turned around again. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out, so he took a few steps closer. And then a few more steps, as if inspecting her. "Yo-you know about Izzy?" he asked, his voice shaking. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Very much," Izzy said. "Because I am Izzy... Isabelle Sophia Gardner."

Connor's mouth dropped for a moment, before an expression of shock and love mixed into a look of adoration.

"Ads!" Travis called, coming in from the back as well. "Why'd you take off, I was trying to talk to you about something very important." He looked up from his daughter, and then to Connor and frowned a bit. "What's wrong with your face?"

"What do you mean?" Connor asked, not taking his eyes off Izzy. He didn't even seem offended.

"Why are you looking at my daughter like that?"

"I'm not looking at her in any special way," Connor said. "I'm looking at her the same way I have for years, since I first saw her. Tiny and pink and cute as a button, this is how I've always looked at her... I'm gonna hug her!" He stepped forward and folded his arms around Izzy tightly. "I love you so much!"

"I love you too, Uncle Connor," Izzy said, returning the hug.

Travis just stared on in utter confusion.

Once Connor let go, he took a step back. "Okay, I'm gonna start preparing dinner. What do you want? Name it and it's yours. Wait, you know, never mind, I'm gonna just make everything." With that, he walked to the kitchen.

"He's gotten so weird since he was attacked," Travis remarked. He then turned to Izzy, who was trying to slip away unnoticed. "Hey, sit down."

Izzy nodded and took a seat on the couch, looking at her father. "What do you want to talk about, Dad?"

"I really want to know what you think about making Linda... part of the family," Travis said crouching down so he was eye level with Izzy.

"Part of... _this_... family?" Izzy asked. "_Our_ family?"

Travis smiled, nodding. "Yes."

"I think..." Izzy said slowly, before a light came to her eyes. "It's one of the best ideas I've ever heard!"

"Really?" Travis said, his smile widening.

"It's genius," Izzy said.

"Yeah?"

"Brilliant, superb!"

"You think so?"

"Yes, I love it," Izzy said. "I've always wanted a big sister!"

Travis opened his mouth, then closed it and frowned. "Um... I think our signals got crossed somewhere in there..." he said slowly.

"No, I get you completely, dad," Izzy said. "You're going to adopt Linda. And I think it's a wonderful thing to do."

"Ads," Travis said. "I'm not going to adopt her."

"You're not?" Izzy asked.

"No, Addy," Travis said. "I'm going to marry her."

Izzy immediately stood up. "That's just preposterous!" she yelled. "How can you even think about marrying someone barely old enough to be my big sister?"

"Addy..." Travis tried to get her attention.

"It's insane," Izzy kept ranting. "Ridiculous. You can't marry someone who is closer to my age than your own!"

"Come on, Addy, she's not that young," Travis said.

"Yes she is," Izzy said. "She's not even old enough to actually drink. You can't get married, Dad, it just ruins absolutely everything!" With that, Izzy ran back outside as fast as she could.

Travis stood dumb-founded for a moment. He turned to see Connor peeking in from around the corner.

"Oh, no, I'm not involved in this," Conner said. "This is between you and your daughter." With that, Conner retreated back into the kitchen.

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><p><strong>I would love it if you guys would all keep reviewing. Reviews make me write faster and better!<strong>


	7. Off to Oregon

**Okay, so this turned out to be one of the shorter chapters, but I like where it ended. I'm still working on the next chapter and it should be up soon. Anyway, keep reading, hope you enjoy, and please review! Thanks!**

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><p>Off to Oregon<p>

Travis sighed and took a seat on the couch. It was then that Linda walked in. She smiled. "Oh, Travis, I'm sure I found the perfect location," she said before she noticed his face. "Did you tell her?"

"Yeah," Travis said, running a hand down his face.

"I take it she wasn't too thrilled," Linda said. She pouted a bit and took a seat next to Travis, crossing one of her legs over his.

"She, well, somewhere along the line there was some miscommunication, but when I finally got it out, she was not happy," Travis said.

"Well, I'd be suspicious if she took it any other way," Linda said. "It's classic 'Father's getting married' syndrome. I myself went through it when I was just about her age. She will get over it once she realizes that me being in your life doesn't diminish her importance to you."

"You think so?" Travis asked.

"Of course," Linda insisted. "You know, maybe I should talk to her, girl to girl."

"Do you think it will help?" Travis asked.

"Entirely," Linda said. "After all, we need to break the ice eventually. Better sooner than later or the ice is just going to get thicker." She bent forward and kissed Travis deeply, just as Connor was walking into the room.

"Am I interrupting something here, because I can leave if you need me to," he said.

"No, Con," Linda said as she began to walk off. "I was just about to find Addison."

"You know, she doesn't like it when she's called Addison," Connor called after her. "And I actually don't like to be called Con..."

It didn't take Linda long to find Izzy. The twelve-year-old had climbed a treehouse that she had spotted the day she had arrived. It was old, and worn, but it looked like it could stand through a storm, so Izzy thought it would be a good place to mope.

"Hey, Addy, may I join you?" Linda asked from the ground.

"If you can get up here," Izzy replied in nothing more than her normal speaking voice.

Linda climbed up, having a bit of trouble in a constricting dress and heels, but soon made it. She took a seat next to Izzy. "So, you've heard," Linda said. Izzy just nodded. "It came as a shock, huh?"

"Yeah," Izzy said, narrowing her eyes at the woman.

"You know, I remember what it was like to be twelve," Linda said.

"I'll bet you do," Izzy said. "It was practically yesterday."

Linda took a moment to make sure she didn't reply harshly. She didn't really want to make enemies with Travis's daughter. After all, she knew that Addy would always come first, so she might as well make nice.

"I had my first crush when I was your age," Linda said. "And, my father got married right when I was your age as well, so I know exactly what you're going through, but being twelve is a wonderful time. It's a time you need someone you can talk to, but someone that isn't your father. You're growing up, and soon, you too will understand what it means to be in love."

"Me?" Izzy asked. "I really doubt it. I've got a lot to go before I fall in love."

"Well, take it from someone who learned a lot at a young age," Linda said. "Being in love is a wonderful thing, that takes up your whole being and-"

"I don't mean to be rude," Izzy said. "But, I'm sure that you being the daughter of the goddess of love has nothing to do with my dad falling for you, right?"

Linda allowed a smirk to crawl onto her face. "Your father underestimates you, Addy."

"But you won't," Izzy said slowly, mirroring her expression. "Will you, Linda."

"Who I am is not a crime," Linda said. "And to dish some dirt, I do adore your father. He is everything I have ever wanted in the man I marry. This is real, and there is _nothing_ that you are going to do to come between us. Hate to break it to you, kid, but you are no longer the only girl in Travis Stoll's life, so, get over yourself."

"If this is real, then my father's money has nothing to do with you wanting to marry him, right?" Izzy said.

"You listen to me, Addison," Linda said. "I am marrying your father in two weeks weather you like it or not. You do _not_ want to get tangled up with me because I will break you. You got it?"

"I read you loud and clear," Izzy said. She then immediately began making her way down, and was on the ground in fifteen seconds. It took Linda considerably longer.

* * *

><p>Addy logged onto the computer at the Gardner home a little later that day to find an e-mail from Izzy that simply had one word and several redundant punctuation marks:<p>

**EMERGENCY! ! ! !**

Addy quickly dashed down the stairs and grabbed the only cordless phone in the house so that she could talk while in the basement.

Izzy was pacing back and forth waiting for the phone to ring, and it had barely begun when she grabbed it. "Addy?"

"What's this big emergency, Izzy?" Addy asked.

Unbeknownst to the two girls, Papa happened to be walking past the computer room and spotted the open e-mail. Noticing the cordless phone was not on its base, he went to another phone and carefully picked it up, making sure to be absolutely silent as he listened in on the two girls talking.

"It's horrible and I really do not know what to do," Izzy said. "Father's getting married!"

"What?" Addy questioned. "No, there's no way that Dad would do that to me."

"Well he is, and she's awful and totally wrong for him," Izzy said. "So, you can't delay bringing Mother out here any longer. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I got you," Addy said with a sigh. "Okay, so, I will tell her first thing tomorrow morning."

"And Addy," Izzy said. "Please, hurry. I don't think I can do think I can do this without you."

"Right," Addy said. "Just hold out until I get Mom there."

Addy sighed as she hit the off button and began to make her way up the stairs. Only, when she opened the door, she found she was confronted with Papa. "Uh, hi, Papa," she said. "I was just making sure that the phone works in the basement as well as it does near the base. And, it was a friend from camp."

"A friend named Isabelle Sophia Gardner, perhaps?" Papa asked.

"Don't be silly, Papa," Addy said. "That's my name."

"Is it, now?" Papa asked. "Are you sure you're not named Addison Lily Stoll, by any chance?"

Addy grimaced a moment. "I'm busted, aren't I?"

"Big time, Sweet Pea," Papa said. "Now, how about we grab some iced tea and you tell me what's going on here."

"Okay, well, it started at camp..." Addy began telling Papa the story of how she and Izzy met and switched.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Addy came down for breakfast, barely able to breath she was so nervous. Papa was already sitting at the table, a coffee mug at each of four table settings. Henri was finishing going over appointments for the day, which luckily weren't many. And then Katie walked in balancing four plates each with an omelet and an assortment of fruit. There was also a box of Cheerios and four bowls for when the omelets were eaten.<p>

"Oh, Izzy, about time you showed," Katie said upon spotting her daughter. "I was about to send Papa up to get you." She took in her daughters outfit, which consisted of a skirt, a plain tee, and cute flats. "Why are you so dressed up? I was thinking that you might want to come with me to the shop today and we'll work on some bouquets for a wedding party."

"I can't," Addy said, taking a seat. "I'm going out of town today."

"Oh, are you?" Katie asked. "And where, may I ask, are you going young lady? And who is taking you?"

"You're taking me," Addy said.

"I'm taking you?" Katie asked, a little playful. "And where, exactly am I taking you?"

"To Oregon," Addy said. Katie looked at little confused for a moment, before her green eyes opened a little wider. "Do you understand?"

"I'm not sure I do," Katie said.

"I'm..." she took a deep breath. "I'm not who you think I am."

"Isabelle..." Katie began.

"Is in Oregon," Addy cut in. "With her father... Travis Stoll."

Katie gasped. "You're not Izzy?"

Addy nodded.

"You're..."

"Addy," Addy filled in as it seemed Katie had lost her voice.

Katie stood for a moment, then looked at Papa, who was smiling at Addy. "You knew?"

"He only just found out last night," Addy said. "I'm sorry, Mom, but I wanted to meet you sooooo badly and Izzy felt the same about Dad."

"But how do you even know one another?" Katie asked.

"We met at camp," Addy said. "I'm sorry. I know what we did was wrong, but I just hope that-"

Katie had suddenly taken Addy into her arms in a tight embrace. Addy stopped talking and leaned into the hug, wrapping her arms around Katie as well.

"Oh, my darling Addy," Katie said. There were tears in her eyes as she stroked Addy's hair. "I have loved you and missed you every day of my life."

"Then why did you leave me and Dad?" Addy asked.

Katie wiped her tears. "Well, your father and I, we just parted," Katie said. "And, it was the only way we could each have a child without having to switch you girls every six months or for holidays. When we split, neither of us wanted to see the other again."

"I don't understand why," Addy said. "Because you are so amazing, I don't know how Dad couldn't have wanted you back. And you know, Dad's a pretty cool guy..."

"Addy," Katie said in warning.

Addy sighed. "Are you going to have to switch us back now?"

"Well, technically, you do belong to your father, and Izzy is mine," Katie said.

"His and hers," Addy said. "Makes me feel like a towel."

"Oh, Honey, not at all," Katie said.

"Well, I've already booked you seats on a flight to Portland leaving at noon," Papa said.

"Noon?" Katie said in shock. "Oh that's not much time at all."

"Well, I'm all packed," Addy said.

"Henri, could you possibly fill in for me for the next few days," Katie asked. "I just, there's no one else I can possibly trust to fill in for me and do such as good as a job that you will."

"I'd be honored," Henri said, smiling gleefully. "And, might I say, this has been one of the most touching moments of my life. I'm gonna hug you all now."

Henri rounded the table and hugged Katie and Addy, then forced Papa to join in as well.

* * *

><p>"I have no idea what to bring," Katie said, panicking slightly. She began pacing her room, breathing rapidly. "What will I say to him."<p>

"It's alright, Mom, you can calm down," Addy said. She was going through Katie's clothes, grabbing the outfits that she thought her dad would like, packing them. "You cannot possibly wear that to go on a plane," Addy said. "Here, change into these, and this." She handed Katie a pair of slimming black slacks and a green button up blouse that matched her eyes. Finally, she had packed everything Katie would need, including shoes and a bikini. She handed Katie a pair of heels when Katie had changed into the outfit Addy had suggested. "Okay, we're ready to go now."

"And your father is aware we are coming?" Katie asked.

"Yes, I just called him while you were in the bathroom gathering your toiletries and changing," Addy said. "He and Izzy will meet us at Hotel Lucia today at about two o'clock."

"Two o'clock?" Katie asked.

"Pacific time, Mom," Addy said. "We'll be there in plenty of time."

"I guess so," Katie said. She seemed to be in a bit of a daze, so Addy led her down the steps and out the front door where Henri was waiting with a car.

"Bye, Papa," Addy said, hugging her grandfather. "I'll miss you. You will visit, right?"

"Of course," Papa said. "Every chance I get."


	8. Hotel Lucia

**For those who are unaware, Rick Riordan has been very fun and tricky with names (much in the same way J. has been). It was pointed in out that in my last chapter, Linda called Connor 'Con.' Not only do the Stolls have a last name that is pronounced 'stole,' bit their first names can also be connected to Hermes. Con, a scam or or trick, is very connected to Hermes, the god of trickery. As well, Hermes is the god of travel... **_**Trav**_**is. Coincidence? I think not.**

**He did that with a lot of his names. You can spell Athena with the letters in Annabeth. You can spell Ares with the letters in Clarisse. Jake **_**Mason**_**. Silena **_**Beaureguard**_**. Will Solace. And, on top of that, a bunch of the characters have names from Greek Mythology. Thalia, Castor and Pollux, Percy even. You can find all the information on names on Wikipedia or Camphalfblood wikia com (add the dots to the spaces).**

**I've tried to do that (not so much in this story, but in my other story). I have a character named Reis (pronounced Reese) a daughter of Eris (letters rearranged). A daughter of Apollo named Dawn. A daughter of Hermes named Hermione, and another named Mercedes (Mercury). It's a fun way authors like to play with names.**

**In fact, I did that a bit in this story. Addison's middle name is Lily, a flower to go for her mother. Linda means pretty one. Linda's last name, Belle, is a French name for beauty (think Beauty and the Beast). Other names I pulled from The Parent Trap movies (Susan, Sharon, Annie, Hallie, Jessie, Meredith are all from the movies, mostly the remake.)**

* * *

><p>Hotel Lucia<p>

Linda stood in the lobby of the Hotel Lucia, and took a deep breath. This was the spot, she knew, the building that the wedding would happen. She turned around as the elevator doors opened and her father, step-mother, and younger sister stepped out.

"Daddy, Meredith, Andrea" she said, smiling brightly at them, and gave them each a kiss on the cheek. "So, what do you think of the hotel?"

"I want to go to the pool," Andrea, the little sister said. She was only about seven.

"I just adore it," Meredith said. "But I'm much more excited to meet the groom."

"Yes, where is the man that is going to be taking my little girl away from me?" Linda's father asked.

"Now, Daddy, be nice to Travis," Linda said. "He is absolutely everything you or I could ever want in the man I marry, plus a few million more."

Mr. Belle smiled. "Well, then you know that I will be nice," he said.

Linda turned around and spotted Travis come through the hotel door. "There he is," Linda said, turning to her parents for a moment, before turning back, to see Connor, Izzy, and the dog Jessie walk in behind Travis. "And he brought the whole family with him," she said in a bit of a moan, but didn't allow her smile to waver from her face. "Travis!" She greeted the elder son of Hermes with a zest. "I'd like you to meet my parents. This is my father, and my step-mother, Meredith. Meredith, Daddy, this is Travis Stoll, the man I'm gonna marry."

"It's an honor to meet you," Mr. Belle said. "Please, call me Roger."

"The pleasure is mine," Travis said, shaking his hand, and then Meredith. He smiled at Andrea. "And what's your name?"

"I'm Andrea," the girl said. "Can I pet your dog?"

"Sure," Travis said. "Her name is Jessie."

Linda forced her smile to stay. "And these are Travis's brother, Connor, and his daughter Addy."

"Hello there, darling," Meredith said, smiling at Izzy in a ridiculous manner.

"Hi," Izzy said flatly. "Can we find our room?"

"Yeah, I'll go check us in," Connor said.

"How long do they plan to stay here?" Linda asked.

"Just overnight," Travis said. "Like us. They wanted to help with the planning."

"That's so sweet of them," Roger said.

"Anyway, while they get checked in, how about we all go check out the banquet halls," Linda said.

"I like that idea," Travis said. "You stay here with Connor, okay, Ads?"

"Okay, Dad," Izzy nodded.

* * *

><p>Several minutes later, a cab pulled up to Hotel Lucia. From this cab emerged Katie and Addy. Katie took a deep breath and smoothed down her pants.<p>

"Are you okay, Mom?" Addy asked.

"Yes," Katie said. "Quite." She took a few steps forward, then turned around. "Oh, not at all. Can't you just go in there and send your sister out?"

"No way, Mom," Addy said. "Don't you want to see both of us at once?"

"Oh, but, Addison, I wasn't built for this," Katie said. "I left your father for a reason."

"Let's go, Mom," Addy said, grabbing her mother's hand and dragging her in.

* * *

><p>"Where did my brother go off to?" Connor asked, noticing that Izzy and Jessie were the only others of his party left in the lobby.<p>

"They went to scope out the banquet halls," Izzy said. "Told me to wait for you."

"Okay, then let's see if we can't find the rooms," Connor said, and they entered the elevator up to the third floor.

* * *

><p>Katie and Addy walked into the lobby a moment later. Addy looked at the wall clock. Any moment, she knew, she could run into her dad, or uncle, or sister. She wasn't sure what she would do when that time came around.<p>

"Okay, I've got our room," Katie said. She handed a key card to Addy. "Go take our bags up, will you? I think I need a drink."

"Are you sure, Mom?" Addy asked.

"Positive," Katie said. She made her way toward the hotel bar.

Katie had just arrived at the bar when she realized she had given Addy all the bags, including her purse. She turned around to make her way up the the floor. Just as she got to the lobby, she spotted Travis, a woman with her arms around him, standing in one of the elevators. The moment Travis spotted her, his blue eyes went wide, and he followed the elevator door, until it was closed, as if trying to decide if she was really there. She just managed a smile and a small wave.

When Katie arrived to her floor and approximate room number she called out, "Addison Stoll!"

Two doors on either side of the hall opened and one of the twins standing in each doorway. A moment later, one of the girls had wrapped her arms around the daughter of Demeter tightly. "Mother."

"Oh, Izzy, darling," Katie said, wrapping her arms around her daughter. "Look at you. Look at the both of you," she said as Addy stepped closer. She then hugged them both. "You two look so much alike, it's... How could you do this to me?"

"Uh, hey, Katie," Connor said stepping into the hall as well as Jessie came out sniffing. She barked and jumped at Addy, who easily caught the dog's two front paws and rubbed her nose to Jessie's.

"Connor Stoll!" Katie said and stomped her foot.

"Woah, what's the look about?" Connor asked, holding his hands up in defense.

"You no doubt had something to do with all this?" Katie said.

"No, Mom, he didn't," Addy said.

"It was all us," Izzy added.

"I was just going to suggest that you move your little reunion into a room," Connor said.

"And why exactly do we need to do this?" Katie asked, crossing her arms and glaring at Connor.

"Well, if you want the entire hotel to know all your business, then I guess staying out here's not a bad idea," Connor said. "I just thought you'd want a little privacy."

"It's so weird that you two actually know one another," Addy said, looking between the uncle that had helped raise her and the mother that she had spent the last couple of days with.

"I'd have to agree with Uncle Connor, Mother," Izzy said.

Katie nodded and sighed, so they went into Katie's room. Once in and the door was closed, Katie pointed at one of the beds. "Sit," she said.

Izzy and Addy looked at one another, sighed in unison, and then each took a seat on the bed. A moment later, Connor was sitting between them.

"Not you, Connor," Katie said. "You weren't the one that tricked me to come out here thinking that Travis actually knew I was coming. Though, the man I saw in the elevator certainly had no idea that I even existed still, not to mention was twenty feet away."

"You saw Dad?" Addy asked.

"Momentarily, yes," Katie said. "He stared at me like he wasn't even sure I was real or if the Mist was playing tricks on his eyes. It was humiliating, standing there like a fool while some other woman was weaving some charms around him." Katie sighed deeply and sat on the desk chair heavily, staring at her two daughters. "Now, one of you is going to explain to me exactly why you lied and brought me out here under false pretenses."

"Were they now?" Connor questioned. "You know, I'm just gonna take Jessie here on a walk."

"Hold it!" Katie stopped him. "Is there something going on here that I should know about?"

"Mother," Izzy said, standing up. Katie turned back to her daughters. "Father's getting married. To... to this harpy of a daughter of Aphrodite. She's awful and absolutely wrong for him."

"And the only way that he won't go through with it is if he sees you again," Addy added on. "You two were made for one another, I just know it... we know it."

"Oh... well, I'm sure she's not quite as bad as you seem to think she is," Katie said. "You know, the total witch stereotype of Aphrodite's daughter is actually very wrong. I knew several girls from cabin eight that were actually quite enjoyable to hang out with and were very nice, I'll have you both know."

"No, this woman falls more into the Drew category," Connor said, taking Jessie's leash.

"Wait," Katie said as he tried to make a break for it again. "You knew about this? And here I thought that you were just another pawn in this game of theirs!"

"Oh, well, you know," Connor said slowly. "I may have given you a hard time while you were with my brother... but I was, well, I was jealous. But, I do know him and when these girls say that she's wrong for him, well, its true, but nothing I do or say will change his mind. I don't need to see him hurt again. It was hard enough for him to lose you and Izzy. I don't want him to end up with the wrong girl."

"And you think I'm the right one?" Katie asked. "No. Absolutely not! Travis and I are over for good. I am here for one reason and one only. And that is to switch you girls back. I have half a mind to grab Izzy and go right now, but luckily for you girls, I feel that your father has a right to know that he's had Isabelle with him since your camp ended. Now if you will excuse me, I really do think I need a drink." She grabbed her purse and walked out.

* * *

><p>Travis took a deep breath as he exited the room he was sharing with Linda. He looked around and then began on his way toward the elevators, but not before running into Izzy. "Oh, hey, Ads. I'm just gonna run out for some air really quick. Do you think you could keep Linda company?"<p>

"Sure, Dad," Izzy nodded.

With that, Travis made his way down to the lobby. He looked around for a moment, before running into Addy. "Addy, what are you doing here?" he asked. "I thought you were going to keep Linda company."

"I was... just looking for her," Addy said, barely catching her words. She smiled at Travis for a moment, and then hugged him. "I love you, Dad," she said.

"Oh, my, well, I love you too," Travis said, looking down at his daughter with a gentle smile. "Now, go find Linda, will ya?"

"Definitely," Addy said. She went to the elevators. However, when the door opened, a beautiful young woman walked out, checking her reflection in a compact. Addy was about to walk in when the woman stopped her.

"You haven't happened to see your father, would you have?" the woman asked.

"What, me?" Addy asked, looking around to see if there was anyone else the woman could be talking to.

"Duh, you, Addison," Linda said, giving Addy a bit of a nasty look. The fact that the woman still was beautiful, even with that look on her face clued Addy into the fact that she was actually meeting Linda.

"Yeah, just saw him a moment ago," Addy said, looking Linda over to see exactly what she was up against. She knew her father, and this was not the woman of Travis Stoll's dreams. No, Travis liked girls who knew how to have fun, and didn't wear clothes that might as well not exist. Addy couldn't help but smile.

"What are you looking at?" Linda asked, noticing Addy's look.

"Nothing really," Addy said. "You're just, how shall I put it... very pretty."

"Oh, please, don't think you'll fool me with that," Linda said. "Which way did your father go?"

"Oh, he was headed that way," Addy said, pointing towards where she had just come from.

"I'm sure," Linda said, and then went off in the opposite direction.

Linda walked into the saloon a moment later and took a seat at the bar. The woman next to her was running her fingers through the ends of her brown hair. The bartender handed her a glass of a white, alcoholic drink.

"One white Russian," the man said. "Trust me, you got some problems, that will help make them go away. It'll give you all the courage you need." He turned to Linda. "And what can I get you?"

"Oh, I'll just take a water, thanks," Linda said. "Bottled, if you've got it."

The bartender sighed and turned to the end of his bar.

Katie lifted her drink. "Here's to..." she turned to Linda. "Here's to you. Let us hope that nothing in your life is nearly as complicated as mine has just begun."

Linda forced a smiled and thanked Katie as Katie drank the whole thing down straight.

"Here's your water," the bartender said, placing a bottle of Pelligrino in front of Linda, and your bill, Miss Gardner."

Katie took the bill and signed her name, verifying that she indeed was staying at her room in the hotel. Linda couldn't help but peek over, and then gasped.

"You're Katie Gardner?" Linda asked. "As in _the_ Katie Gardner?"

"Yes," Katie said. "That would be me."

"Eep!" Linda scooted her stool a bit closer. "My name is Linda Belle and I just adore your flower arrangements. I called your office this morning, but the man in said you were out of town and forgot to take my name and number. I simply wanted to know if you could at least design the bouquets and flower arrangements for my wedding because there is no one better in the world. This must be the Fates."

"Oh, well, I can't help but agree," Katie said, blushing a little bit at the flattery. "If you give me a color scheme and maybe your favorite flower or two... maybe an idea of how you want your center pieces to be..." She grabbed a napkin and wrote her room number on it. "You can either knock or slip it under the door, or even leave it with the front desk, but I don't think I'll be staying long."

"Oh, thank you thank you thank you!" Linda squealed and stuffed the napkin in her purse. "I'll write it all down right now." With that, she got up, leaving a few bucks on the table for her water.

"Man, girls are getting married younger and younger these days," the bartender said to Katie.

"You know, by the time I was her age, I think I was already divorced," Katie said. "So you're talking to the wrong girl."

"You know, she looks a bit like you," the bartender said. "Younger, definitely, and a bit higher in the cheek bones, but you two girls do look an awful bit alike. Almost like sisters. Except for the eyes. I have to say, I do like green eyes a little better."

"Oh, well, thank you," Katie said. She pushed the glass back on the bar and stood up. "I have to get going, however. I have some business to take care of. I just needed the liquid courage." With that, she walked out as swiftly as she could.

* * *

><p>Travis soon found himself wandering outside by the hotel's pool. He spotted his brother not too far off, sitting in a chair, the few chairs around him occupied by towels and bags. He began to make his way toward Connor, until he was intercepted by Mr. and Mrs. Belle. Andrea was clutching to her mother's leg.<p>

"Travis, at last, we've found you," Meredith said with a bright smile. "This hotel would do wonderfully for the wedding. And, they have an opening in just two weeks, which would be perfect."

"If we book today, they offered a discount," Roger said. "But, don't rush yourself. We wouldn't want you to make a decision too hastily, after all."

"Um, yeah, can I have a minute to think?" Travis asked. He was about to turn away, but stopped himself. "That is, I'd like to talk to Addy about it a little more. I think she might need a bit more time to adjust to the idea."

"Oh, we understand that," Meredith said.

"We had the same problem with Linda, after all," Roger added.

Travis nodded and turned back toward Connor, but before he completely faced his brother, a familiar figure appeared in his peripheral. He turned to the woman walking out of the hotel's double doors. So different from the young girl he remembered her to be, and yet, the exact same as the one he remembered at the same time. He began forward again, only this time, not really paying attention to anything around him. He almost knocked over several pool servers, until he actually did run into one.

"Travis!" he heard his brother calling as he felt himself falling.

"Dad!" that was his daughter. As well, Jessie was barking. Most of the people in the area gasped in shock. And then Travis was submerged in water. When he pulled himself out of the pool, on the other side as there was no longer a need to actually circle the thing, he came up right in front of Katie Gardner.

She looked at him, a blush crawling onto her cheeks. "Katie," he said taking a few steps forward. He meekly attempted to squeeze some of the water out of his clothes, but it was pretty much useless.

"Hello, Travis," she replied, looking around for a moment before looking into his blue eyes with her green ones.

"You know, this is strange," Travis said. "Because, I am one-hundred percent in awe of seeing you here, but you seem to have been expecting me."

"Yeah, well, about that..." Katie said.

"I can explain, Dad," Izzy said, coming up behind her dad.

"Addy, you know this woman?" Travis asked, turning to his daughter.

"Well, 'this woman' is an odd way to refer to your ex-wife and our mother," Addy said, coming up next to Izzy.

Travis's eyes bugged for a moment. "Both of..."

"Travis, they pulled a switch on us," Katie said. "They ended up at the camp together and put all the pieces together."

"Wait, the camp Chiron suggest I send you to?" Travis asked, pointing at Izzy, then Addy, then back at Izzy. He looked at them each closely. "Man, you two look more alike than Castor and Pollux."

"Who and who?" Addy asked.

"They went to Camp Half-Blood the same time as our parents," Izzy explained easily.

"Which means you're Addy," Travis said, picking the correct daughter. "You've been with your mother since camp let out?"

"Yeah," Addy nodded.

"And I've had my little Isabelle?" Travis asked, looking at Izzy. She nodded, unable to find her voice.

"Girls, could you leave your father and I to talk for a little bit?" Katie asked.

"Oh, certainly," Addy said. "Talk as long as you like." She went back to the pool and jumped in. Izzy followed after sending her parents a warm smile.

"So, Chiron recommended that camp to you as well?" Katie asked. She sighed. "Do you suppose he did so on purpose, or that it was all by accident?"

"Oh, there is no accident when it comes to that man... centaur," Travis said.

"He couldn't have known that they would do what they did," Katie said.

"Well, with their father being me, you never know," Travis said.

"Oh, I think you give yourself a bit more credit than you earn," Katie said.

"Travis!" Linda's voice called out. She came out and approached the once lovers. "Why are you all wet?"

"Um, took a swim," Travis said.

"In your clothes?" Linda asked.

"Ah the water was too tempting to wait to take them off," Travis said as an excuse.

She looked at Katie, and then smiled. "Oh, good, you two have met. Travis, darling, this is Katie Gardner. Miss Gardner will be a consultant for the flowers for our wedding... and, wait, how _do_ you know one another?"

"We went to camp together as kids," Travis said quickly.

Linda looked at Katie, a little suspicious. "You know, she looks quite a bit like..."

"Hello, Linda," Izzy said, appearing next to her on one side.

"The resemblance is uncanny," Linda said, turning her piercing blue eyes on Travis. "Almost surreal."

"I'm not entirely sure what that word means, but I'm sure I agree with you" Addy said, next to Linda.

"Oh, Addy it means..." Linda looked at Addy, then Izzy, then Addy again, before letting out a loud yelp. "Tw-two of you?"

Travis meekly scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I'm sorry, I guess I forgot to tell you that Addy is a twin."

"That's not something that just slips your mind, Travis," Linda said. "That is something you deliberately hide."

"Hey, you think it's bad he didn't tell you?" Addy asked. "Try being one of the twins that he never told. That's hard. By the way, I'm the _real_ Addy. You've been with Izzy, my oh so sweet sister."

"And this is our mother," Izzy said, gesturing to Katie.

"Wait, you two were married?" Linda asked.

"Briefly," Katie said.

"I'm sorry, I need a moment to take this in," Linda said, taking a step back.

"You know, I'm sure you two have a bit to talk about now," Katie said. "As well, I am here for a single purpose. To switch you two girls back. Tomorrow, I will be leaving on the first flight out, and I will be taking Izzy with me."

She nodded, and with that turned away. Izzy and Addy both sighed and looked at one another.


	9. Dating and Planning

**Anyway, I'm going on vacation tomorrow. I don't know how much I'll be able to write while I'm gone. Most of my files are stored on the internet, but I'll try to get some writing on this done. Promise. Hope you enjoy this.**

* * *

><p>Dating and Planning<p>

"I would actually really appreciate it if you told us where we are heading," Katie said as two Stolls and two Gardners all walked down a road together.

"North," Travis said almost automatically. A smirk crawled onto his face as he realized that he hadn't even meant to be a little sarcastic.

"Thank you, Travis, but that much I had discerned," Katie said. "I meant where is our destination."

"We're almost there," Izzy assured her parents.

"But, we thought that... well, neither of us can remember a time before this afternoon's pool incident when the four of us were together," Addy said. "And since this is our only night in the same town since forever, and we don't know when the next time will be, well, we thought it would be a good idea for at least one family dinner."

"You hate family dinner night," Travis said to his daughter.

"With you and Uncle Connor, yes," Addy said. "But with my sister and mother, now that's a different story. As you always tell me, never knock something until you've tried it."

"We did try it," Katie reminded her daughter as kindly as she could. "You two were too young to remember. It just wasn't meant to be."

"Well, with two screaming babies, I can understand why you two were stressed," Addy said.

"Circumstances have changed," Izzy said. "You're both successful, more mature, and we're no longer babies. We're practically young adults ourselves."

"Yeah, and I'm engaged to another woman," Travis said. "Or did you two forget that?"

"I've been trying to," Addy said. She frowned and walked ahead a few steps. "I still cannot believe that you got engaged and didn't tell me!"

"Well, I thought I was telling you," Travis reminded her. "You would have found out from me if you two hadn't pulled the little scam you two cooked up."

"Like father like daughters, Travis," Katie said. "You are a son of Hermes."

"Hey, I did _not_ teach her how to scam people, as much as you may not believe," Travis said. "I know that your opinion of me probably isn't very high, but I think that I've done a good job raising our daughter to _your_ standards. Name one thing you've seen in Addison that makes you believe otherwise."

"The fact that I'm in Oregon," Katie said without missing a beat.

"She kind of got you there, Dad," Addy said, while Izzy had to hold back some snickers.

"But, we're here," Izzy said, calming her snickering a moment later.

The two looked at the restaurant. Katie wasn't familiar with the majority of the restaurants in Portland, but the outside definitely resembled a nice restaurant, the kind that two twelve-year-olds pooling their limited resources could not afford. The windows were tinted, there was a doorman that opened the door for them, candles and perfectly blooming roses at each of the tables, silk table clothes, a dress code and reservations were required.

"Girls, are you sure this the right place?" Katie asked.

"Yep," Addy said.

"Gardner party for two," Izzy said to the hostess.

The young woman looked at the four of them, before her eyes begun to scan down the reservation list.

"Party of two?" Travis asked.

"Oh, yeah, about that," Addy said. "This isn't the kind of place I really like to eat."

"But there's no good reason for the reservation to go to waste," Izzy said. "We'll be around the corner at the burger joint in our price range."

"And don't worry about ordering, we've already put in the orders for you," Addy said. "And it's paid for, so you really have to stay or all that money will go to waste." With that, the two young girls walked out.

The woman nodded. "Just this way, please." She began leading them further into the restaurant, past a dance floor. "Interesting daughters you have. Is it your anniversary?"

"We're divorced," Katie said flatly. She didn't know why she hadn't insisted that Izzy spend one final night with her father instead of following through with the girls' plan.

"Really, I never would have guessed," the hostess said. "Now, as they said, your meals have been ordered and paid for. However, they did forget to provide us with what salads and soups you would like. Today's soups are cream of mushroom, tomato bisque, and French onion. The salads we offer are the house salad, the all greens salad, and the tomato salad."

"I'll have a basic house salad," Katie said. "And cream of mushroom soup."

"French onion soup and tomato salad for me," Travis said.

The woman nodded and was off.

Within a few moments, a man came out with an ice bucket and two champagne flutes. He opened the bottle and poured them each a glass, putting the bottle into the bucket. "My name is Joseph and I will be your server today," the man said. "I hope you enjoy your champagne. Would either of you like water as well?"

"No, thank you," Travis said. "I'm good." He turned to Katie.

"I'll be fine, but thank you," Katie said.

Joseph nodded. "Your salads should be out in about ten minutes. Would you like some breadsticks in the mean time?"

"Actually, I think we'll use the wait time to dance," Travis said.

Katie's eyes widened, but Joseph was already walking off. "Dance?" she asked, her green eyes on Travis as he stood and offered her a hand. "You dance?"

"A bit," Travis said. There were a few couples on the floor and the string quartet was playing some classical waltzes. "May I have this dance?"

Katie thought a moment, then took Travis's hand. He led her to the dance floor, and Katie was quite pleasantly surprised that Travis actually did know how to properly waltz. As she only knew a few basic steps, she allowed him to completely lead. He kept it simple at first, but soon couldn't help but spin her, and lead her into a quick foxtrot when the music changed.

They talked a bit as they danced. Simple things. How Katie got her business started. How Travis got into the business of being a corporate spy. Why Connor still had a bit of a limp and a bruise on his chin.

"How did you meet Linda, anyway?" Katie asked.

"Oh, well, I was actually hired by a fashion magazine in the area to do some spying, pick up some tips, and Linda was the guide to the fashion world that the magazine hired so I wouldn't be entirely lost when it came to talking with the fashion pros. It was coincidence that she herself is a demigod."

"Seems it must have been the work of the Fates, then," Katie said. "I mean, how many other demigods can live in Oregon?"

"As far as I know, Connor, Linda and I are the only ones," Travis said. "Which is good, because it's rare that monsters wander up here. That is actually one of the reasons that I moved out here. I figured that living with two demigods, Addy herself would be in danger of monster attacks. The less demigods in an area, the less monsters tend to show up. Addy herself has only ever seen two or three monsters her whole life."

Katie smiled a bit at that. Izzy had seen quite a few more monsters, living in a popular destination for demigods. And not all of them were easy to defeat.

"You know, this is nicer than any restaurant you ever took me to," Katie said after another moment.

"Yeah, well, I didn't exactly have much money when we were together," Travis said. "In the end there, it was hard enough to feed ourselves and the girls, not to mention go to nice restaurants." The look in Travis's eyes made Katie suspect that he blamed the money problems they had on their break-up all those years ago.

"There were other problems too, Travis," Katie said, looking down. "We were still kids ourselves. We didn't give our relationship enough time to grow and mature. We got married on a whim."

"Even so, I don't know that I would have changed anything about it," Travis said. "At the time, I felt that I was only complete when you were near me."

Katie turned her head away for a few moments before turning back to him, spotting his blue eyes. They were looking at her the way they used to.

"Overall," Katie quickly said, looking away again, "the best thing that came from us were the twins." She felt a little rushed saying it, as if justifying their break-up... that nothing mattered anymore but their daughters.

When Travis didn't respond, she knew that her words had cut him pretty deep, as if opening an old wound. However, whether or not they had broken up, she would feel the same, but it was they way she said it. It had sounded as if, maybe, she would have changed her fate if she could do it over.

"It looks like Joseph is returning with our salads," Travis said suddenly, letting her go and stepping back from her.

Katie looked at Travis for a moment, but his eyes were looking away, so she followed him to their table just as Joseph arrived.

-0-0-0-

"Do you think it's going well?" Izzy asked as she and Addy were finishing up their five dollar meals.

"I'm sure it's going wonderfully," Addy said. She took a big bite of her burger, and only half finished chewing before she was speaking again. Izzy could see why Connor had managed to figure out that she wasn't Addy. "We know that, deep down, they still love one another. I mean, just think about the way they look at one another."

"But, what if it's not enough?" Izzy asked. "It only takes one slip of the tongue to ruin it, you know, them being divorced and Father being engaged to the DOA."

Addy frowned a bit, taking in Izzy's words. She knew their plan would have worked flawlessly if not for the Daughter of Aphrodite, or DOA as she and Izzy had taken to referring to her as.

"If she was true to her mother, she'd be on our side," Addy said.

"Unless she actually does love Father and we just don't see it," Izzy said.

"No, she likes his money and his sword skills," Addy said. "We have to keep that mentality, or we'll lose."

Izzy frowned. "Addy, this isn't a game you can win or lose, this is our lives, and our parents." She looked down. "We're only twelve... maybe this is something we just don't understand."

Addy huffed. "Well, with that attitude the DOA is definitely going to win Dad. And we lose one another except for holidays." She crumbled up her napkin. "I can't live without Mom in my life now that I know her. And I would get the short end of the stick. I'd be stuck with Linda as my live-in step-mother. You'd hardly ever see her, and the best bet for me would be if I got shipped off to boarding school."

Izzy looked down. "I hadn't really thought of that," she said softly. "But, if this date isn't enough, we will need a back-up plan."

"Maybe we can consult Connor when we get back to the hotel," Addy said. "He's as against Linda as we are."

"The camping trip," Izzy suddenly said.

"What about it?" Addy asked.

"We go," Izzy said.

"Okay, I'm not following you," Addy said.

"Maybe one date isn't long enough," Izzy said. "But a weekend long trip in the wilderness as a family... it'll be like heaven. If nothing else, Father will realize that there is no way Linda would ever want to go on that kind of trip."

"And we'll have a real family vacation," Addy said.

"Plus, the way Father and Uncle Connor were describing it... it made me really want to go," Izzy said. "We don't really get to go camping because Mother's always so busy with work. And it's more of a father thing, really."

"But we need to make sure that they can't force you home," Addy said. "Because, if they try to take you to the airport, you're not likely to go kicking and screaming the way I would. So, first a few ground rules. We call Mom 'Mother' and Dad 'Dad.' That way they both get called what they're used to hearing. As well, that would otherwise be one big indicator."

"Okay, and we don't eat food that is too spicy," Izzy added.

"But we do eat full meals," Addy said.

"But we don't ask for seconds," Izzy said. "However, we look longingly at food."

"Once we're on the trip and at the campsite, food rules are off," Addy put in. "Because, once we're there, we have to stay the night, not enough time to turn around and make it back home that day. And after a night, I'm sure that they'll both want to stay at least one more, if not two more nights."

"And we both respond to both names," Izzy said.

Addy smiled brightly. "We are geniuses!"

"Well, we should head back and create our outfits for tomorrow," Izzy said.

"Why?" Addy asked.

"Because we don't want our clothes to be a dead give-away as to which of us is which," Izzy said. "We want to be as close to matching as possible."

-0-0-0-

Izzy and Addy were both in Addy's room, watching as their parents returned. They had both hoped that the two would be happy and relaxed, but Travis seemed a bit awkward and Katie seemed stiff. They sighed.

"It was nice talking to you," Travis said. "Maybe, now that they know about each other, we could get together once in a while, like a family, like they had suggested."

"I don't think that would be a good idea," Katie said. "We can work out some plan, so we can both see them enough, but I'd rather we kept it to just them."

Travis nodded. "You're probably right... you usually are. I'll see you tomorrow morning then, give my good-byes to Izzy. I guess I better return to Linda before she starts to worry." With that, he turned around and made his way toward the elevator to get to his and Linda's room.

Katie sighed. "You can come out, girls," she said once he was gone.

They both stuck their head out. "You knew we were listening?" Izzy questioned.

Katie turned to her daughters, and she could see dashed hope in both of their blue-green eyes. "You know you shouldn't have done that," she said.

"How was your dinner?" Addy asked. "What did you and Dad talk about?" Izzy's eyes were asking the same questions.

Katie put her hands on her hips and frowned at her two daughters. "Your father is getting married to a lovely woman, and I expect you two to respect that. And respect that your father and I broke up for a reason, and twelve years doesn't make a difference to change that. Some things... time can't fix. We've moved on, and now your father has a chance at happiness again with someone and if you keep trying to get us back together..." there were tears in her eyes.

"Mother," Izzy said, biting her lip. "I'm sorry... we didn't mean to hurt you."

"No, it's not you," Katie said. "But, could you leave the issue alone... please?"

Izzy and Addy looked at one another. "We will," they said in unison, both of them crossing their fingers behind their back.

-0-0-0-

Travis and Katie stood in the lobby, having checked out of their respective hotel rooms, waiting for the girls to come down so they could say their good-byes.

"They were brushing their teeth when I came down here so they shouldn't be long," Katie said to Travis when he looked over at her.

The elevator door opened and the two girls walked out. Their brown locks styled exactly alike to the hair. One wore a pair of ripped up jeans (clearly belonging to Addy) and a cute button-up top (clearly belonging to Izzy). The other in a black pleated skirt and an oversized tee. Each had one Converse sneaker and one black flat on.

"Girls..." Travis said, frowning at them, though also slightly impressed. "What is this?"

"What does it look like, Dad?" one asked.

"Izzy, you can't get on a plane wearing those jeans," Katie said. She looked between the two, and then said to the other, "Or that shirt."

"Oh, you'd be surprised what they will let you wear on a plane these days, Mother," the second one said.

"This is ridiculous, girls," Travis said. "Get dressed properly, will you?"

"No deal," one said.

"We have a camping trip to go on," the other said.

"Izzy," Katie said.

They both turned to her. "Yes, mother?" the questioned in unison.

"Addy," Travis said.

"Dad," they said together.

"We have a very simple proposition, Dad," Izzy said.

"We all go on the camping trip," Addy said. "And, when it's over, we will tell you, truthfully, which of us is which."

"Because it would be such a shame if Mother took the wrong one of us home," Izzy said. She and Addy added, together, "Again."

Katie turned her green eyes to Travis. "You know, they get this from _you_."


	10. Camping Trip

**I'm going to start differentiating from the story, make it a little more PJO like. I hope you still like it, and sorry for the long delay. I finally got a job, and my sister had a baby and those two things have consumed a lot of my time, energy, and thoughts.**

**As well, this chapter seems a bit short. But, it felt like a good place to stop off. I hope you all enjoy and once again, sorry for the delay. Reviews make me write faster.**

Camping Trip

"You know, I do _not_ like this, Travis," Linda said, following him as he went back and forth loading the truck with the camping gear.

"Look, we're in a tight situation here, Linda," Travis said, looking at her and scratching his head. "It is impossible to tell the two apart."

"That cannot be true," Linda said. "Even identical twins have differences." She held up her hand. "You could fingerprint them."

"And how does that help before we know which is which?" Travis asked.

"You raised her for twelve years and you're saying you don't know which daughter is yours?" Linda asked. She was getting very angry. "I can almost understand it for you, but for that woman..."

"Hold it," Travis said stopping half way back to the camping gear in the garage to look at Linda. "Why should it be different for Katie and me."

"It's just that girls pay attention to details," Linda said slowly.

"Linda," Travis said. "I know my Addy. I really do. And I'm sure that Katie knows Izzy just as well. But the problem is that they each know one of us, and they have planned this... very well."

At that moment, Addy and Izzy came out. They were both wearing jean shots, hiking sneakers, and grey tee shirts with the logo of Addy's school. Travis just gestured to the two. "Are you telling me that you would be able to tell them apart. And it's just a camping trip, Linda. You have nothing to worry about."

"I'm not worried about you getting hurt," Linda said. "What concerns me is that you're going on a weekend long camping trip with your _ex-wife_ and your two daughters that want you two to get back together."

"She's absolutely right," Katie said, walking out of the house wearing jeans, boots, and a yoga tank top.

"Huh?" the two girls looked up in confusion.

"It would not be fair for me to take up this time," Katie said. "After all, in a few weeks, this family will be your family, Linda."

"What are you suggesting?" Linda asked.

"You should join in," Katie said. "There is room, after all."

"Mother," Izzy said.

"No!" Addy continued. "This is supposed to be our time as a family."

"Girls," Katie said. "I think it would be rude to exclude Linda. She's going to be your step-mother, after all."

"Um... I'm not sure that's such a good idea..." Travis said slowly.

"Well, it's a better idea than letting you go without me," Linda said.

Fifteen minutes later had Linda coming out wearing black yoga pants, a white tank top, and white tennis shoes. She dropped her bag of clothes into the bed of the truck. "Let's go," she said, climbing into the passenger seat.

"Hope you all have a good camping trip," Katie said, stepping away from the truck.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Addy asked.

"You're coming with us," Izzy said.

"If she's not going, then I don't need to," Linda said.

"No, Linda, this is going to be your family," Katie said. "I would hate to intrude."

"But, Mother, this isn't the deal," Izzy said.

"Make her come, Dad," Addy said.

"See you," Katie said, waving to them.

After driving as far as the car could take them, Travis got out and began pulling some of the camping gear on his back.

"This is it?" Linda asked.

"No, this is the trail," Addy said. She was helping Izzy get some of the bags onto her back.

"Yeah, we get to hike up into the mountains," Izzy added.

"And," Addy continued, lifting a carrying pack. She shoved it into Linda's hands harshly. "We all get to carry bags filled with all we need."

"Why?" Linda asked.

"Because, as you can see, the car can't go any further," Addy said. She and Izzy turned and began up the mountain trail.

"It's okay, Linda," Travis said. He took the bags Addy had shoved into her chest. He handed her the smallest of the bags, which was, to Linda's relief, actually pretty light.

Travis took the lead after a few meters, because the girls realized that if Addy led, Travis would be able to tell which one was which. However, they were beginning to suspect that he was okay with the current situation. Camping with his two daughters and fiancee; it seemed sort of perfect. Both girls would have preferred their mother.

As they continued up, they were also disappointed that, while Linda did not seem the camping type, she was actually adept at hiking. They both assumed that she must have prepared incase she would ever have been sent on a quest. The two also decided that, while she prepared, there was no way she ever would have been on one.

"Hey, Dad," Addy said. "Are you sure we won't get attacked by monsters?"

"Entirely sure," Travis replied.

"What if we do?" Izzy asked.

"That's why I have a Celestial bronze knife in my bag," Travis said. He stopped and turned to them. "And you two will hide."

"Us _two_?" they asked in unison. They then turned their eyes toward Linda as if to ask what about her.

"What, just because I'm a Daughter of Aphrodite you think I can't fight?" Linda asked. "I may not enjoy it, but I've got skills." She then rolled her blue eyes and kept on following Travis.

"I still don't like the DOA," Addy said when Izzy looked at her. "I feel she's pure evil... and at the very least, way too young for Dad."

"I guess you're right on that account," Izzy agreed. "Plus, he and Mother would be perfect for one another."

"Time for a little more fun?" Addy asked.

"Oh, definitely," Izzy said.

-0-0-0-

"Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

"What are you doing?" Linda asked, looking at Izzy, who was 'ca-coo'ing upwards, hands cupped around her mouth. She was doing it loud enough that there was a slight echo.

"Oh, I'm making sure that cougars stay away," Izzy said. "That call is proven to scare them. Some ancestral instinct. But, hey, whatever works, right?"

"Well, why isn't your sister doing it?" Linda asked.

Izzy turned to Linda, rolling her blue-green eyes. "She, like our father, would prefer to wrestle any cougars. That's why she's hiking up by our father, annoyed with me for scaring them off." She cupped her hands around her mouth again. "Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

Linda gave Izzy an odd look as the girl continued on. She followed, a few steps behind. After a few moments, she lifted her hands up. "Ca-coo!"

Up ahead, Travis looked down at his daughter hiking nearer to him. "What is your sister doing?" he asked.

"Oh, it's a bird call, apparently," Addy said. "We learned about it at camp, and she wants to see if she can see one of these really pretty birds up here."

A moment later, Linda was doing the same thing. Addy resisted the urge to smile too much. "Well, it's nice to see at least one of you is getting along with Linda."

Addy just smiled and kept on walking, not getting ahead in case she should give herself away too early.

Upon arriving at the campsite, Addy, Izzy, and Travis all got to work setting up the site while Linda had to take a moment to sit down and catch her breath.

"Is it time for dinner?" Linda asked, after setting up her tent. She then noticed that Travis had a fishing rod and a net. "Please tell me that is to catch tomorrow morning's breakfast."

"Nope," Travis said. "Out here, we catch our food."

"You did bring something else though, right?" Linda asked.

"Well, there's always the salt and pepper we brought to season the fish," Addy called out as she and Izzy each worked a worm onto the hooks of their fishing lines.

"But, I would suggest that you not eat just that," Izzy said. She smiled a bit. "Wait, do you not like fish?"

"I don't dislike it," Linda said. "With a good marinade fish can be quite good. But... how are we even going to cook them?"

"Over a fire," Travis said. "Speaking of which, would you mind starting one so we can get to cooking as soon as we have enough fish?"

Linda stared at Travis for a few moments, but then sighed. "Fine. Where is the wood?"

"Look around you, Linda," Addy said. "We're in a forest. I'm sure you can find some wood somewhere." Izzy snickered then pulled Addy to the lake to start fishing.

"Okay, remind me why we dug up a few worms when Dad brought leeches?" Addy asked quietly as the two girls sat fishing.

"Oh, I have better plans for the leeches," Izzy said with a smile. She then got up and walked to where Travis was, cast her line again, and took a seat on a rock next to him. Addy did the same on his other side. Travis smiled down at his two daughters, content to be out in nature, fishing, with both his daughters.

-0-0-0-

"And, you're sure this isn't poisonous?" Linda asked. It was a few hours later and they had caught enough fish for the next day. They had been cooked and the four were now all seated around the fire eating.

"Safer than Sushi," Travis said.

"Which we noticed you seem to like," Izzy said. Addy nodded, but was chewing.

"Okay, that has to be the one that has been staying with you," Linda said pointing at Izzy. "Izzy, right? Not Addy. Addison hasn't seen me eat anything."

"Oh, look, you caught us," Addy said. She pointed at the night sky. "You really think it's a good idea to hike now? There's barely any moonlight."

"Tomorrow morning," Linda said.

"Oh, come on, Linda, let's stay a couple of nights," Travis said. "Camping is good for the soul."

"Anyway, by tomorrow morning, we'll have made ourselves enough alike again that you won't be able to tell us apart," Addy added with a wide smile.

Linda turned her head to Travis. "You know, that's the one you raised," she said. She then stood. "Well, I am exhausted. It has been a long day. I will see you all tomorrow." She began toward her tent. "Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

"Uh, Lynn..." Travis began. She turned around to face him. "Why are you doing a bird call at night? The bird is probably asleep, not to mention that it's way too dark to see any now."

"Bird call?" Linda said. "But they..." she pointed at the girls, then her voice darkened. "There aren't any cougars out here, are there?"

"Sure there are," Travis said. Linda went stiff. "And that call will only attract them. But you're not in any danger."

"How do you know?" Linda asked.

Travis stood and walked to her. "Because, they like easy prey, and getting past me will be impossible." With that he kissed her lightly.

"Oh, Dad, come on, we don't need to see that," Addy said.

He turned to the two. "Be nice," he said to the girls.

With that, Linda crawled into her tent for the night and Travis and the twins finished their dinner avoiding all topics of Travis's love life.

-0-0-0-

"This was a genius idea," Addy said, trying her best not to laugh or make too much noise. "She is going to flip out."

It was a few hours later. Travis had taken to his own tent, believing his daughters to be asleep. Luckily for the girls, it was a warm night and Linda was sleeping mostly out of her sleeping bag.

"She'll kill us if your laughing wakes her," Izzy hissed. She had the tub that had the rest of the leeches. She opened it up the tub and grabbed a leech. Addy did the same. They distributed some of the remaining leeches on the woman's arms and across her stomach. They left just enough to use as bait the next day, if needed.

Neither were surprised to be woken by an ear-splitting scream the next morning. They clamped their hands over their ears, but smiled and laughed.

"What is it," Travis burst out of his tent, shirtless, holding his Celestial bronze knife.

"Get them off me!" Linda yelled, pulling a leech off her arm, and whining about how slimy it was.

Travis sighed, glad it wasn't a monster attack, stabbed the knife into a tree stump, and went to help Linda with the leeches.

"Oh, come on, Linda," Addy said. "They're harmless."

"Except for the blood-sucking part," Izzy said. "You could think of them as a bunch of small, slimy Edward Cullens. I'd have thought you'd be into all that vampire stuff."

"Girls, this is not funny!" Travis said, having collected several leeches into his hand and grabbing the tub to put them where they belong. Linda was still searching her body frantically to make sure they were all gone.

"Sorry Dad," Izzy said. Addy mumbled something, almost like an apology.

"You girls need to apologize to Linda," Travis said.

"And that's not happening," Addy said. She crossed her arms and stomped off into the woods.

Izzy watched her sister go. "She just needs some alone time," she said. "And Linda, putting leeches on you was mean, insensitive, and immature."

"I didn't hear an actual apology in there," Linda said.

"I'm not sorry we did it," Izzy said before crawling back into her tent.

-0-0-0-

"Yeah, that's a nice one," Connor said to Katie as the two were looking at a photo album on Addy. Katie wanted to see all she had missed, as well was being a mother all the way. She had already managed to clean the entire Stoll household. Connor had found her the night before detailing Travis's room. He suspected that something more Addy centric would likely keep any tears from the daughter of Demeter's eyes.

"She must have been seven there," Katie said.

"Exactly," Connor said. "How'd you know?"

"Oh, that's when Izzy lost her front tooth," Katie said. "I still can't believe how much they look alike. If someone handed me this picture a week ago, I'd wonder when Izzy had posed for it."

Connor laughed. However, he stopped when he heard Jessie outside the house, barking. It wasn't her usual joyful bark at meeting someone. It was a guard dog bark, one that she only used when there was danger.

"Katie, get upstairs and grab a sword," Connor said, kneeling down and reaching under the coffee table where a quick sword was stashed.

"What's wrong?" Katie asked, following Connor despite what he had said. However, a moment later, she saw what was up. A creature, fiery hair, one bronze leg and one donkey leg, was coming at the house, and fast.

"I thought Travis had killed her," Connor said, a sudden recognition and a bit of fear coming to his eyes.

"Half-Blood, we meet again," the Empousa laughed, coming in range of speaking.

Katie was shocked how quickly she had come. She finally took Connor's advice and made for the stairs. Before she even reached them, she heard the sounds of swords meeting and a crash.

Because of her cleaning the night before, Katie knew exactly where the weapons were kept. She grabbed a few throwing knives and a long sword. She wanted to stay as far from the creature as possible.

She got back downstairs just on time to see Connor crash land on the coffee table. Katie threw the first of the knives, which skimmed the creature's side. She yelled, but was uninjured.

Katie threw the second, which impaled the creature's arm. She yelled and pulled the knife out, throwing it back at Katie. The daughter of Demeter reacted quickly enough, knocking the knife away with the sword.

"Leave," Katie said. "Now!"

The Empousa yelled, but then smiled. "The one I'm looking for isn't even here," she said. Before Katie could ask what that meant, the monster had turned and was gone.

"What was that about?" Katie asked.

"That Empousa attacked me earlier this summer," Connor said. "But I thought Travis had destroyed her."

"So, it's probably going after Travis?" Katie asked, a panic coming to her eyes.

"I guess," Connor said. "You don't have to worry, he's capable of defending himself."

"What if it goes after the girls to get to him?" Katie asked. She was already walking out the door. "Hurry up, Connor. I need a guide."


	11. The Empousa

**Okay, so I know it has been forever... and I'm sorry. Anyway, there will be one more chapter after this... and maybe an epilogue. Hope you enjoy and keep reviewing.**

The Empousa

"Katie, get in the car," Connor said, driving up beside her. She was running as fast as her legs would take her, because getting into a car would take too long.

"It's too far gone," Katie said, jumping in without him even stopping.

"I know where it's headed," Connor said. Speeding up as soon as Katie had closed the door.

"Drive," Katie simply said.

"This car can only go so fast," Connor said. The car seemed to lift off a wheel as the road curved sharply. "At least if we don't want to end up in a wreck."

Katie didn't argue anymore, though the furling of her brow and the biting of her lower lip made it evident that she was not happy that they couldn't go any faster. "How fast is this Empousa?"

"Clearly, fast," Connor said, and pressed down on the gas a little more.

* * *

><p>Addy was stomping around in the forest, kicking at leaves and fallen branches when they got in her way.<p>

"Apologize to that DOA," she mumbled in anger. "As if. She comes in and ruins everything and he wants me to apologize to her? I should just go and move in with Mom for that comment. Not like he could stop me. Probably make the DOA happy."

She yelled in anger again, and her yell covered the snapping of a branch behind her. She almost thought she felt a presence, but when she turned around, no one was there. So she kept stomping around, moving away from the campsite.

Addy kicked a tree with most of her might, which apparently was more than she thought because the next moment, her whole foot was throbbing in pain and she yelled again, even louder than before. Loud enough that it reached the campsite.

"Are you okay?" Addy looked up at the voice of a girl. She appeared to be only a few years older than Addy, maybe in her middle to late teens. She also seemed to be really pretty.

"I'm fine," Addy snapped at the girl. She began to walk, limp really, back toward the campsite.

"You seem hurt," the girl said. Addy didn't question how the girl had found her without her noticing her earlier. She supposed that the girl was someone in Greek Mythology. Possibly a Hunter of Artemis, or a goddess. She had heard that Artemis preferred to be a bit younger than the other gods, but she wasn't sure by how much.

"I'm fine," Addy said, a little less harshly, wondering if she was face to face with a goddess. "But thank you anyway."

"Are you lost?" the girl asked.

"No, I'm not," Addy said, starting to get annoyed again.

"Oh, well, that's good," the girl said. "But, the thing is... I am..."

Addy stared at the girl and blinked. She then couldn't help but laugh.

"What's funny?" the girl asked, anger and confusion evident on her face.

"Well, I guess you're not a goddess," Addy said, calming her laughs. With one last snicker she shook her head. "I guess I should have known."

"Of course I'm not a goddess," the girl said, looking almost insulted. "Why would you think such a thing?"

"It's... nothing," Addy said. "If you're lost, there's a trail about four hundred yards that way," she pointed west to where the trail that she used every year to get to the campsite... when she wasn't wandering the woods in anger. "Take it down the mountain and you'll come to a parking lot, probably only about three or four cars, but there's also a ranger's station. You should be there by mid afternoon if you leave now. But, you might want to take a stick, for a little extra balance on some of the steeper parts... as well to scare away any cougars that might be hungry."

"Oh, I doubt I'll need that," the girl said. "Cougars don't generally crave my kind of meat."

"Addy!"

* * *

><p>About the time that Addy kicked the tree and yelled, Izzy looked up and then out in the direction of the woods that Addy had run.<p>

"I wonder what she did," Linda said slowly, but not looking up from her nails, which she was noticing were not surviving the camping trip as well as she had hoped.

"I think she kicked a tree," Izzy said. There was a small pain in her foot. She was beginning to think that the times parts of her would hurt for no apparent reason was because Addy had gotten hurt in reality. She certainly got a lot of bruises that she hadn't been able to explain over the years, and Addy seemed like the kind of girl that got a lot of bruises.

"Maybe we should go get her," Travis said. He was beginning to look worried. Izzy couldn't blame him. She was his daughter, but Addy, after all, was his baby girl, who he had watched grow up. She wondered how he would have handled the situation if she had been the one to run off into the woods while Addy stayed behind. He probably would have sent Addy after her, after all, Addy seemed to know the woods well.

"Yeah," Izzy said. She shrugged on a thin sweater and followed Travis into the woods. "You're welcome to stay here, Linda," she added as Linda stood.

"No offense, honey, but maybe it's better if you do," Travis said and continued toward where Addy had run off to. Izzy noticed that he was moving pretty fast and almost had trouble keeping up jumping over fallen branches and slipping between closely grown shrubs, rather than going around such obstacles.

They very quickly came into sight of Addy, only to see another girl. Izzy furrowed her brow, wondering why there was someone else, but Travis's blue eyes widened in fear.

"Addy!" he yelled, and then was moving so fast, Izzy barely understood what was happening. The girl magically acquired a sword and was bringing it down on her sister. Travis, however, managed to sprint the thirty or so yards, grab Addy, and swing around a tree in the time it took her to swing, her sword slashing the bark of the tree.

"I destroyed you," Travis said, holding Addy behind him.

"It seems you were mistaken," the girl said.

"It's the Empousa," Izzy whispered to herself. It seemed the creature heard and revealed her true form. Izzy gasped, having never seen one, and Addy outright shrieked. Travis reached for his knife, only to find it missing. He remembered how he had stabbed it into a tree stump earlier that morning, and apparently left it there.

"Izzy, run," Travis yelled. And Izzy didn't hesitate, turning and running as fast as her legs would take her. She heard a laugh, but was too afraid to turn to see. But, she heard several footsteps behind her and prayed that the Empousa wasn't the closest behind her.

She knew, from the clomping and the clanking that it was right behind her. "Izzy!" she heard Addy yell.

The twelve-year-old only closed her eyes and prayed to go just a bit faster.

And then she was flying... not literally, but running at least as fast as her father had run to save Addy. She was back at the sight in a matter of seconds.

"Where did you come from?" Linda asked, her blue eyes suddenly going wide.

"Empousa," Izzy said. She wasn't even out of breath, a little tired, but not exhausted. She spotted the knife and used her might to yank it out of the tree stump.

"Empousa?" Linda gasped, standing. She ran into the forest. It wasn't hard to tell where it would be. Addy kept shrieking and sounds of a sword hitting trees and crashing of branches could be heard. Izzy followed.

* * *

><p>"How much longer until we're there, Connor?" Katie asked, climbing the mountain as fast as they could. As Connor was still injured from his first encounter with the creature, as well as having been hit a few times this second time, he was not able to go his top speed. In fact, he was beginning to think he had a broken foot because every time he put his left food down, shooting pain went up his leg.<p>

"Go on without me," he called. "Take the right at the next fork in the path and the trail leads straight to the lake site. Go!"

Katie listened to his advice, speeding up. They had already followed a few shortcuts that Connor knew, as well as had taken several different forks in the road. She wouldn't have been nearly this far without him, but now he would only slow her down.

She quickly came to the fork in the road and from there knew that it was a straight shot down the path. She heard the lapping of the shore, but then heard a crash and a yell. She held up the sword, only to find Travis flying over some shrubbery and landing at her feet.

"Dad!" Two shouts came out from the forest.

Travis was back on his feet in moments. He had a few cuts, and his shirt was all but destroyed, but he seemed determined.

"Stay away from them!" he yelled. He went straight back in. He seemed to have barely even noticed her, but she parted the plants to make the way in easier and faster. Travis used his speed, but it wasn't far. The Empousa was, in fact, going after the girls. They were behind Linda, whose nails had magically grown to about eight inches long each, and were made of celestial bronze. Behind her, Izzy held a knife out, and Addy hid behind Izzy, a small cut on her arm.

Travis plowed into the creature, but was unarmed and couldn't do much damage. It just back-handed him, throwing him into a tree trunk.

"Travis!" both Katie and Linda yelled.

"Dad!"

"Get up... Mother?"

Katie charged at the creature with the long sword. It brought it's sword to meet her.

"Get out of here, girls," Katie yelled as the two swords collided. She really wished she had grabbed a more manageable sword.

"Let's go!" Addy said. The plants parted for the girls when Katie threw up a hand. Linda, meanwhile, ran to Travis's aid.

The two girls turned and ran, Izzy quickly taking the lead with her new-found speed. When they got to the campsite, Izzy stopped. "Did Dad bring anymore weapons? We need to help Mother?"

"I don't know," Addy said, freaking out.

"Calm down," Izzy demanded. "Where would his weapons be?"

"His tent," Addy said. Izzy turned to the tent and went in. "I didn't know you could run like Dad can."

"Well, neither did I," Izzy said. "Until just now." She came out a moment later with a sword, thin, straight, but long enough. "Here, you take the knife."

"We're going back?" Addy asked.

"We have to," Izzy said. She looked at her sister. "You don't see many monsters, do you?"

"Rarely," Addy said. "A giant boar, but it didn't bother us... and a few wolves that were a little too big, but they got chased off by girls."

"Well, calm down," Izzy said.

Addy nodded and took the knife Izzy was holding out to her. They turned back toward where they had come. "You stay behind," Izzy said. With that, she took off.

"No problem, seeing as you're too fast," Addy called out, huffing to not fall too far behind.

* * *

><p>The Empousa knocked Katie down. Katie threw a hand, using a tree to swipe at the monster. it jumped back, but its sword was lost. Katie got back up and charged. However, the creature dodged, and then grabbed the handle of the sword, forcing it deep into the tree. Katie felt a small pain in her side, as she had been connected to the tree at the time. It then punched Katie. She dropped to the ground, unconscious.<p>

"Ugh, Katie," Travis groaned, as he had woken just a few moments before.

The Empousa laughed and placed her hoof on Katie, pressing down just a little. "This is all your fault, Demigod," she said. "If you had just stayed out in the first place, I wouldn't have had to come back. But, now I get to kill all those you love. Starting with this one." She lifted up her hoofed leg, as if to slam it down.

"Don't you dare!" Izzy yelled. In a flash she had ran by, slashed the creature, and knocked it down, away from Katie. The creature glared at Izzy, and then stood. "You'll be easy pray," she said. "You're not even a demigod, are you?"

"Why don't you come and find out," Izzy said, backing away. As she hoped, the creature followed her, which was away from her mother.

The Empousa jumped at the girl, and Izzy took a few hasty steps back, tripping over a tree root. She dropped the sword in the process.

Addy arrived back just as the Empousa laughed. Izzy scrambled to get the sword, but one kick from the creature, and Izzy would be toast, which is exactly what the creature had planned.

"Izzy!" Addy yelled reaching out for her sister, though she was nowhere near close enough to help. Suddenly, the tree next to Empousa came alive and wrapped a branch around its midsection, lifting it several feet in the air. Izzy grabbed the sword and jammed it into the Empousa's stomach. It immediately turned to gold dust.

With the creature gone, Izzy smiled. "Mother, you're..." she stopped, noticing that Katie was just coming to. She looked at Addy. "That was you, wasn't it?"

"I... I don't know," Addy said. Izzy sped ran next to Addy.

Linda, Travis and Katie stared at the two girls.

"You can run super fast," Addy said to Izzy. "Just like Dad."

"And you can control plants," Izzy said to Addy. "Just like Mother."

* * *

><p>"We'll have a race," Travis said to Izzy as he helped load her things into the trunk of a taxi the next day. "Next time, I promise." He bent down and kissed her forehead. "You sure you can't stay for the wedding?"<p>

"School starts before it for me," she said, hugging her father. She wouldn't see him again until Thanksgiving. She then turned to Addy and hugged her.

"All that planning, and all that work, and it's still happening," Addy sighed. They had both thought that the return of the Empousa and it's apparently easy defeat of Travis would have sent Linda running. She insisted that if he had been properly equipped, he would have defeated it again, but he was distracted by them.

"Good-bye, Travis," Katie said as he took her bag and put it into the trunk as well. She then hugged Addy tightly. "Christmas and I will teach you everything you need to know about plants."

"Gee, thanks Mom," Addy said.

"Which will help you much better to control them," Katie said. At this Addy smiled brightly and hugged her mother. A few tears began to drip. "I'm going to miss you."

The two Gardners got into the taxi and it took off.

"We're not going after them, are we?" Addy asked, looking up at her father.

Travis shook his head. "You'll see Izzy on holidays, and your mother at Christmas at the latest."

Addy turned around and ran to her room, crying.

* * *

><p>Hours later, Izzy walked into her own room. She had been hoping that Travis and Addy would appear at each turn of the journey. At the airport in Oregon, in the first class cabin, their landing in Orlando, their front lawn, in Papa's office... but they hadn't come. She'd lost her dream life.<p>

"Izzy?" Katie stood in the doorway. "Are you going to be okay? You've been awful quiet."

"I'm okay, Mother," Izzy said. "I'm just going to miss them."

Katie nodded and hugged Izzy as the young girl began to spill tears.

"You'll see them soon enough," her mother said. "And, if you want, I'll let you to out for the wedding. I'm sure your sister and father would both like that."

Izzy nodded. "I'll think about it," she said


	12. A Wedding

**Hey, so I've been nominated for a Phoenix Award under best humor! Yay! It's my first nomination on , so I'm kind of excited. And, I know it's been forever since I last posted, so I've decided to finally finish and post this last chapter! Awesome, right! I do hope you enjoy!**

A Wedding

"Izzy Gardner!" the brunette turned around as she was at her school locker. In her first year of middle school, she finally got a locker all to herself, one with an actual lock combination. A lock combination that actually worked. No one would be stealing her perfectly ripened apples anymore.

"Hey, Cessily," Izzy said, giving her long time friend a hug. However, Addy would always be her number one friend.

"Where have you been?" Cessily asked. "I mean, you got back from camp, but never called me!"

"Sorry," Izzy said. "But, things got crazy! At camp... I met, well..."

"And you cut your hair," Cessily said before Izzy could get the words out.

"Yeah, I did..." Izzy said.

"Wait, met?" Cessily asked. "Is there a boy I should know about?"

"Only my father," Izzy said.

"Your... you met your father? How? When? Where?" Cessily's voice had gone from the usual gravel sound to a near squeak in excitement.

Izzy took a deep breath, and then told her friend the whole story, aside from the Empousa and that she apparently could run at literal super speeds. Izzy had tested it several times, and apparently she was still able to run, though it seemed a little slower, possibly because she didn't have the adrenaline in her veins as when fighting an Empousa.

"And after all that, you still didn't get them together?" Cessily asked. "What a bummer. But you know, that's slightly reminiscent of a movie I think I saw..."

"A movie?" Izzy asked. She shrugged. "Anyway, now I'm going to go back out this weekend for the wedding. Mostly, I think Addy is going to need me there for support."

"Well, I wish you all the luck with that," Cessily said. "But, a corporate spy, that sounds so cool."

Izzy nodded. "My father pretty much rocks."

Every day at school seemed a little harder for Izzy. She had missed Addy her last week of summer, but it was worse, seeing all her friends. Of course, they all seemed to learn that she had a twin, and so she was constantly reminded. Not to mention every time she looked in the mirror, she was reminded all over again.

Even worse than that, Katie seemed to be feeling the same way. Several times, she called Izzy by Addy's name, and the first few days back couldn't look at Izzy without crying. Izzy kept over-hearing her having conversations on the phone where she was crying, or just talking about the past. At least once it was Uncle Connor, trying to convince her to give it one more go.

But, finally, Friday came around. Izzy had packed the night before, and Henri would be picking her up from school to take her directly to the airport.

"I can't believe that after all this time he's finally settling down with someone new," Izzy heard her Aunt Miranda's voice as she came down the stairs. She suspected that Katie would need the comfort over the weekend while Izzy was away.

"I'm happy for him," Katie said. She didn't look up from her morning coffee. "Really, I am. It's just..."

"I can imagine," Miranda said. "I mean, if David and I ever got a divorce and I went through that, finding out he was getting married to a daughter of Aphrodite like that..."

"She's not as bad as Drew," Katie said.

"Who said anything about Drew?" Miranda asked.

Katie blushed and turned her head. "Oh, Izzy, you're awake, good."

"Izzy," Miranda said with a smile and hugged the girl. "My, you look so much older. If you keep growing so much, some day, I won't even recognize you."

"Well, maybe you shouldn't wait a year and a half between visits," Izzy said. "You won't miss so much."

"Oh, touche," Miranda nodded.

"But, I have to get to school," Izzy said. "I'll see you Sunday night, Mother."

"Good-bye, darling," Katie said, hugging Izzy and giving her a kiss on the forehead. "And give everyone my best."

Izzy nodded and headed off to school.

* * *

><p>"Now, let's get this straight," Addy said. "I'm not a flowergirl."<p>

"You and your sister are junior bridesmaids," Linda said. She was at her final dress fitting and Addy really wished she had a bright red drink to 'accidentally' spill, but she didn't have so much as water.

Addy had to get fitted twice, once for herself and once for Izzy, who was the exact same measurements.

"Anyway, Andrea is the flower girl," Linda said, motioning to her little sister in a white gown with pink trimmings. Addy was not surprised that the DOA had chosen pink for her wedding theme color. Which of course put Addy in pink.

"And, could you explain again why my dress has to have these weird capped sleeves?" Addy asked.

"Well, we couldn't have you going in a dress without sleeves, could we?" Linda asked. "After all, you're still only a child."

"I'm not that young," Addy said. "Practically a teenager, you know."

Linda sighed. "Really, Addison, do you want to be abducted by a child molester or something?"

"Rather him than you," Addy mumbled. "And don't call me Addison."

"You know, this time in two days, I will officially be your mother," Linda reminded the girl.

"Step-mother," Addy said. "I'll buy you another mirror, not like you don't already have enough, but this one will have an inscription on it." Addy began mocking Linda's voice. "Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who does Travis love most of all." She then spoke in a lower voice, as if to imitate a male. "Though he marries you, Aphrodite's spawn, he will always love more the bride that is gone."

Linda frowned, and seriously wanted to throw a shoe at Addy, but Addy ducked into a dressing room to change out of the dress she was in and back into her day clothes. By the time she came back out, Linda was being helped out of her white gown. She walked out of the shop and headed to the nearest fast food restaurant.

"Addy, you shouldn't try to ruin your father's wedding," the voice of Connor said from behind her, paying for her as she came up two dollars short for the meal she had ordered. He helped himself to a few of her fries. He finally looked back to normal from his attack weeks earlier. "You should know, most of all, that he deserves to be happy."

"Yeah, but why can't he be happy with Mom?" Addy asked. "She was so cool and perfect and pretty."

"I know," Connor said. "They were so young when they got married... and I don't know if they ever really knew what true love was then. I'm sure they figured it out, but timing is key... you should know that."

Addy huffed and bit into her burger.

"But, come on, let's go pick up your sister," Connor said, dangling the keys of the truck. Addy smiled finally and followed him.

* * *

><p>"Hey, you're here!" Travis smiled when Izzy and Addy walked back into the house. He took them both into a tight hug. "That's it, I have to call your mother."<p>

"What, really?" Addy asked, her eyes widening.

"I'm keeping you both," he said. "I need both my girls with me."

"Both?" Linda's voice came from the couch. "Aren't you forgetting someone?"

Travis's cheeks reddened a little. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "All three." He held out an arm for her to join in on the group hug. Izzy and Addy both stepped away as soon as she stood up.

"Come on, Iz, I'll show you where you'll be sleeping," Addy said, taking Izzy's bag. "And then you can see the hideous dress you'll be wearing tomorrow."

Addy began up the steps. Izzy hugged her father one more time and then followed her twin up the steps.

"They both hate me," Linda said with a roll of her eyes. "What does it take to win them over?"

Travis looked toward where his girls had disappeared to. "It's not you," Travis said. "It's that you're not..."

"I'm not Katie," Linda said. She pouted her lips as she approached him. "That doesn't bother you, does it?"

Travis smiled at Linda. "Of course not," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close. He was leaning in to kiss her when...

"Oh, gag me," Connor said.

"Seriously, Connor, grow up," Travis said as he released Linda and turned to leave the room.

* * *

><p>"Katie, you look like a mess," Miranda said, walking into the kitchen Saturday morning.<p>

"Well, I don't have anything I'm doing today, so it doesn't really matter how I look," Katie argued.

"About that..." Miranda said slowly, and pulled out a plane ticket.

"What's that?" Katie questioned, sitting up straighter, suddenly aware.

"Do you still love him, Katie?" Miranda asked.

Despite her eyes watering, Katie shook her head no. "I... not for twelve years."

"Then why don't I believe you," Miranda asked.

The tears began to flow down Katie's face. "What am I supposed to do?" Katie asked. "Just crash his wedding?"

"Exactly," Miranda said.

"Don't worry," Henri said as he and Papa walked into the kitchen as well, each dressed nicely, ready to go to a wedding. "And you're not going alone."

"We've chosen a beautiful gown for you, darling," Papa said. "Not a bridal gown, but it'll do."

"But we've got work to do and only a certain amount of time," Miranda said. "So let's get going."

* * *

><p>Addy and Izzy peered into the courtyard, filled with chair, and a long red carpet. At the end of the carpet stood their father, fidgeting a bit, as he was minutes away from getting married. All the guests were seated, and the ceremony was about to begin. Linda, looked beautiful, just like any bride should, which didn't make either of the girls like her any more.<p>

"Get ready, girls," Connor said as the doors opened from the building and the first of the bridesmaids walked through. Linda had five friends come for the wedding... Travis only had Connor.

By the time the twins began walking, the dread of what was happening had grown and neither girl could manage a smile... only Izzy even tried, and that was just for her father's sake.

"This isn't right," Addy said in a low voice. She looked on either side of the carpet. "Maybe I can piss her off enough between now and when she gets to the front to make her change her mind."

She concentrated on the grass, and it slowly began to grow. It over-flowed onto the carpet and tangled up the people's feet, just as they were all standing for the bride. Several people actually fell as they tried to stand.

At least it made Addy smile.

Linda, however didn't take notice.

Soon, Linda had joined Travis at the altar and the minister began his words about love. Travis and Linda held hands.

"If any in attendance can think of a reason that these two should not be wed, would they speak now," the minister said. Addy bit her tongue. She really didn't have a reason. "Then I now pronounce you-"

"Stop!"

The whole crowd gasped and turned to spot a woman in the doorway from the building. She wore jeans and sneakers, and held up a finger to indicate to wait a moment as she caught her breath.

"Who are you?" Linda asked. She turned to Travis. "Another ex-wife?"

"No, but she looks familiar..."

"Aunt Miranda?" Izzy asked, shocked. "What are you...?"

"Miranda Gardiner?" Conner and Travis questioned at the same time.

"Give me a second here," she said. "Not everyone can run like you boys do." She shook her head to get her bearings. "I have a very good reason why these two should not be wed, trust me on this."

"Okay, spit it out or leave," Linda said. "You are ruining my wedding."

"Fine then," Miranda nodded. "May I present to you, the mother of Travis's daughters." She then stepped out of the doorway where Katie stood.

"Oh my gods," Addy gasped, as did most of the audience. "She's so beautiful."

Katie wore a formfitting silver gown with a long slit in the side. Her hair was up in beautiful curls and black liner made her eyes pop while her pink lips looked absolutely kissable. She walked forward a few steps, and the comments through the crowd were all about how gorgeous she looked. Even more so than the bride.

Henri and Papa walked in right behind her, both looking handsome.

"What are you doing here?" Linda asked in a yell.

"Travis," Katie said, walking forward until she was almost at the altar. "I can't let you do this."

"Why not, Katie," Travis asked. "What is this, if I can't be with you then you'll make sure I can't be with anyone else?"

"No," Katie shook her head, tears in her eyes. "You can't marry her because I still love you. Travis, you can't marry her because I want you to marry me."

Everyone gasped again. Addy and Izzy looked at one another and then grabbed hands with high hopes.

"Katie," Travis said stepping forward. "I can't just... marry you. You left me once. Do you remember that? One day, you and Izzy were just gone." He looked down as the tears poured from Katie's eyes. "It made me grow up... It made me into the man I am today. Which is why, if we're going to do this, we have to do it right."

"What?" Katie's green eyes widened.

"Excuse me!" Linda yelled. "You are not going to propose to another woman at our wedding, Travis."

Travis looked at Linda. "Then I guess this wedding is over," he said.

Addy and Izzy looked at one another, each smiling, then yelled and hugged one another.

"Katherine Gardner," Travis asked, taking her hand. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny ring, the same tiny, twenty dollar ring Travis had used when he proposed to her years earlier, when twenty dollars was all he had. "Marry me... again?"

"You... you still have that?" Katie asked as she held out her hand to him.

"Something told me that I would need it today," Travis said as he slipped it onto her finger. "After all, Aphrodite told us it would be a bumpy ride... not a short ride. I have never stopped thinking about or loving you."

The crowd that had come for Travis, the considerably smaller crowd, all stood and began to cheer as Travis and Katie leaned in and kissed.

* * *

><p>"If you want my honest to goodness opinion," Connor said a few months later, back in New York. "You're still crazy." He patted Travis on the back. "But, this time, I'm sure that it'll work out."<p>

Just then, the doors opened and there stood Katie Gardner, on her last day before she would be Katie Stoll forever


	13. AN

**So, with the end of The Demigod Trap, I come to a question, to sequel or not to sequel? The general premise would take place the next summer, Travis and Katie, now happily married and Izzy and Addy once again are going to summer camp, but this time it's Camp Half-Blood. The two will be training to use their powers with the children of the gods, and of course, there will be those that don't think the two belong because they're not a direct child. So, vote here or on my page with a poll, or both if you feel really strongly one way or the other.**


	14. AN 2

**So, the first chapter of the sequel has been posted. It's called Trapped. I like how it's starting. I'm not really putting much of Katie and Travis in it (I don't know if we'll see much of them, as they are basically on their honeymoon). But, there's a good twist at the end of the first full chapter.**

**Also, I'm working on another story, this one starring Katie, Travis, and Connor. It's called Two Princes. Concept, a prank on Katie goes wrong and the Stolls accidentally catch an Aphrodite girl in a tree. As revenge, she and her siblings curse them to desire the same thing. The object of their love, Katie. Now, rather than spending all their time trying to prank Katie, they're trying to woo her. She, personally, starts to miss the pranks... though her feelings and thoughts on them do start to change. Could she be falling for them both? It's a love triangle. Will it end up as a Tratie or a Katnor/Contie? **


End file.
